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THE  REV.  GEORGE  WHITEFIELD 


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STUDIES 


FEB  14  18 


A 


OF 


CAL 


FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


SECOND  SERIES 


/BY 

V 


LOUIS  F.  BENSON, 


D.D. 


Editor  of  “The  Hymnal  Published  in  1895  and  Revised  in 
1911  by  Authority  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the 
Presbyterian  Church  in  the  U.  S.  A.,”  and 
Author  of  “  The  English  Hymn  ” 


PHILADELPHIA 

THE  WESTMINSTER  PRESS 

1023 


Copyright,  1923,  by  the 

BOARD  OF  CHRISTIAN  EDUCATION  OF  THE 
PRESBYTERIAN  CHURCH  IN  THE  U.  S.  A. 


Published  November,  1923 


PRINTED  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  OF  AMERICA 


PREFACE 


Twenty  years  have  passed  since  the  appearance  of 
an  earlier  series  of  Studies  of  Familiar  Hymns.  They 
had  been  running  through  the  numbers  of  “  Forward,” 
the  young  people’s  paper  of  the  Presbyterian  Church, 
and  in  1903  were  gathered  into  a  volume.  The  recep¬ 
tion  of  the  book  was  kindly  —  kindly  enough  at  least 
to  make  plain  that  a  considerable  number  of  people, 
who  wished  information  concerning  the  hymns  they 
loved,  were  willing  to  forego  the  primrose  paths  of 
dalliance  with  myths  and  misstatements,  anecdotage  and 
sentimentalism,  and  to  be  personally  conducted  along 
the  straiter  and  less  flowery  paths  of  truth. 

The  number  of  these  stout  hearts  does  not  appear  to 
diminish.  It  was  indeed  the  author’s  discovery  that 
after  so  many  years  the  demand  for  his  little  book  con¬ 
tinues,  and  is  indeed  larger  now  than  at  first,  which 
has  encouraged  him  to  invite  his  readers,  old  and  new, 
to  accompany  him  a  little  farther  afield. 

In  motive  and  in  method  the  new  Studies  are  very 
like  the  old,  even  to  the  appending  to  each  of  “  Some 
Points  for  Discussion  ”  in  “  the  hope  (now  renewed) 
that  groups  or  societies  of  young  people  might  be  led 
to  think  over  and  discuss  the  message  of  the  hymns 
they  so  often  sing,  sometimes,  it  may  be,  too  thought¬ 
lessly.” 

There  are,  however,  between  the  earlier  Studies  and 
these  two  points  of  difference  to  which  an  old  reader’s 

attention  may  well  be  calledo 

•  • 

Vll 


Vlll 


PREFACE 


First.  In  making  such  studies  it  is  necessary  (now 
as  then)  to  have  some  standard,  common  to  author  and 
reader,  not  only  for  the  text  of  the  hymns  dealt  with 
but  also  in  allusions  to  other  hymns.  In  the  earlier 
book  the  standard  was  The  Hymnal  published  by 
authority  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  the  U.  S.  A.  in  1895.  Since  then  it  has  been 
followed  by  The  Hymnal  .  .  .  revised  in  ign.  In  the 
present  volume  accordingly  the  Revision  of  19  n  be¬ 
comes  the  standard.  The  author  wishes  he  could  alter 
the  plates  of  the  earlier  Studies  so  as  to  make  all 
references  to  hymns  there  conform  with  those  in  this 
book.  But  in  view  of  the  great  number  of  copies  of 
The  Hymnal  of  1895  still  in  actual  use  in  the  churches, 
and  for  other  reasons,  this  change  is  not  now  practicable.' 

Second.  In  the  earlier  series  there  was  no  intended 
connection  between  the  hymns  studied  —  no  continued 
story:  each  of  them  being  chosen  for  its  own  sake  and 
with  an  eye  upon  the  author’s  ability  to  furnish  an 
autographed  copy  of  the  hymn  by  way  of  illustration. 
The  plan  of  the  present  series  is  more  ambitious  —  there 
is  a  continued  story.  The  hymns,  with  one  exception 
that  will  explain  itself,  are  arranged  in  chronological 
order,  and  were  chosen  as  representative  of  the  histori¬ 
cal  development  of  hymnody  and  of  hymn  singing 
among  the  peoples  of  England,  Scotland,  and  America. 

The  story  begins  with  the  joy  and  pride  of  English- 
speaking  Christians  in  their  new-found  privilege  of  sing¬ 
ing  God’s  praise  in  their  own  tongue,  although  with  the 
restriction  (suggested  by  John  Calvin)  that  they  should 
confine  their  praises  to  the  very  words  of  Scripture. 
It  recounts  the  fading  of  the  joy  out  of  the  Psalmody, 
and  the  growth  of  dissatisfaction  with  the  restriction. 


PREFACE 


IX 


It  celebrates  the  advance  of  a  young  champion  (Isaac 
Watts)  to  attack  single-handed  the  authority  and  tra¬ 
dition  of  “  Bible-Songs,”  and  tells  how  the  great 
eighteenth  century  revival  brought  about  the  final  vin¬ 
dication  of  the  people’s  right  to  express  their  praises  in 
terms  of  their  own  experience  rather  than  that  of 
“  David.”  It  goes  forward  to  narrate  how  the  spiritual 
forces  of  the  nineteenth  century  dealt  with  “  the  hymn 
of  human  composure  ”  it  had  inherited  from  the  great 
revival ;  and  attempts  to  set  some  of  our  modern  hymns, 
one  by  one,  against  the  background  of  that  particular 
epoch  or  phase  of  religious  history  out  of  which  each 
hymn  came  in  its  turn,  and  which  so  often  explains  the 
content  and  even  the  form  of  the  hymn. 

In  the  preparation  of  these  Studies  the  great  aim  of 
the  author  has  been  the  attainment  of  a  scrupulous  ac¬ 
curacy  in  smaller  as  in  larger  things;  his  great  pleasure 
has  been  in  the  atmosphere  of  friendship  with  which 
that  preparation  was  surrounded.  His  outspoken  thanks 
are  due  to  the  Reverend  Doctor  John  T.  Faris,  who  en¬ 
larged  his  editorial  heart  to  make  room  in  “  Forward  ” 
for  so  long  a  series  of  long  papers ;  to  his  associate,  the 
Reverend  Park  Hays  Miller,  for  that  sympathetic  en¬ 
couragement  which  makes  the  sunny  side  of  honest  work ; 
to  Miss  Anne  Henderson,  who  read  all  these  Studies 
in  manuscript  more  than  once  (could  kindness  farther 
go?)  to  their  advantage;  and  to  Mr.  Henry  F.  Scheetz, 
for  his  zeal  “  to  make  this  book  [outwardly]  better  than 
the  last.” 

Northeast  Harbor,  Maine 
September  22,  1923. 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


[The  Spread  of  the  Calvinistic  Ordinance  of 
Psalm  Singing] 

1.  All  People  That  on  Earth  do  Dwell.  Wil¬ 

liam  Kethe,  1561 . 

( one  of  the  original  Psalms  of  the 
English  Reformation ) 

2.  The  Lord's  My  Shepherd,  I'll  Not  Want. 

Rous’s  Version,  1650 . 

{representing  the  17th  century  effort  to 
improve  the  Psalmody  in  Scotland) 

[The  Introduction  of  Evangelical  Hymns 
into  England] 

3.  There  is  a  Land  of  Pure  Delight.  Isaac 

Watts,  1707 . 

{one  of  the  new  hymns  he  proposed  to 
the  Independents ) 

[The  Spread  of  Evangelical  Hymn  Singing 
Under  the  Impulse  of  the  i8th  Century 
Revival] 

4.  Jesus,  Lover  of  My  Soul.  Charles  Wesley, 

1740 . 

{the  great  hymn  of  the  Methodist 
Movement) 

5.  Children  of  the  Heavenly  King.  John  Cen- 

nick,  1742 . 

{at  the  parting  of  the  ways  between 
Methodists  and  “  Evangelicals  ” ;  il¬ 
lustrating  the  type  of  Christian  ex¬ 
perience  developed  by  the  Revival) 


page 


I 


12 


22 


33 


45 


XI 


Xll 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


6.  Christians,  Awake!  Salute  the  Happy  Morn. 

John  Byrom,  1750 . 

(a  Christmas  hymn  from  the  Wesley 
circle ) 

7.  Guide  Me,  O  Thou  Great  Jehovah.  William 

Williams,  1745 . .  . 

(a  hymn  of  the  Evangelical  Revival  in 
Wales ) 

8.  Lord,  I  Am  Thine,  Entirely  Thine.  Samuel 

Davies,  c.  1759 . 

( illustrating  the  new  hymn  singing  in¬ 
spired  by  the  Evangelical  Revival 
in  America ) 

9.  Sweet  the  Moments,  Rich  in  Blessing.  Wal¬ 

ter  Shirley,  1770 . . . 

10.  Rock  of  Ages,  Cleft  for  Me.  Augustus  M. 

Toplady,  1776 . 

( illustrating  the  hymn  singing  u  Evan¬ 
gelicals  ”  introduced  into  the 
Church  of  England ) 

11.  God  of  Our  Fathers,  Whose  Almighty  Hand. 

Daniel  C.  Roberts,  1876 . 

(a  Centennial  hymn ,  suggesting  the  con¬ 
nection  of  the  Revival  with  Ameri¬ 
can  Independence ) 

12.  How  Sweet  the  Name  of  Jesus  Sounds.  John 

Newton,  1779 . 

13.  God  Moves  in  a  Mysterious  Way.  William 

Cowper,  1774 . 

( hymns  of  Church  of  England  Evangeli¬ 
cals  carrying  on  the  Revival  in  a 
country  parish) 


PAGE 

56 

68 

80 

93 

104 

119 

130 

142 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


Xlll 


PAGE 

- 14.  All  Hail  the  Power  of  Jesus'  Name.  Edward 

Perronet,  1780 . .  154 

( the  hymn  of  a  very  independent 
Evangelical,  who  had  worked  at 
first  with  the  Methodist  and  then 
with  the  Calvinistic  side  of  the 
Revival,  but  preferred  a  little 
flock  all  his  own) 

[The  Introduction  oe  Hymns  into  Scotland] 

15.  O  God  of  Bethel,  by  Whose  Hand.  The  Scot¬ 

tish  Paraphrases,  1781 . 167 

( one  of  the  original  “  Translations  and 
Paraphrases  of  Scripture,”  added  to 
the  Psalm  Book  of  the  Church  of 
Scotland) 

[The  Earlier  Nineteenth  Century  Hymns] 

16.  Hail  to  the  Lord's  Anointed.  James  Mont¬ 

gomery,  1821 . 181 

(a  new  voice  of  the  new  century:  a 
hymn  inspired  by  the  awakened  in¬ 
terest  in  Foreign  Missions) 

17.  Just  as  I  Am,  Without  One  Plea.  Charlotte 

Elliott,  1836 . 194 

(a  hymn  of  the  Evangelical  Party  in 
the  Church  of  England,  carrying 
on  the  traditions  of  the  Evangelical 
Revival) 

18.  I  Heard  the  Voice  of  Jesus  Say.  Horatius 

Bonar,  1846 . 207 

.  ( by  a  Scottish  Evangelical,  breaking 

forth  into  hymns  that  cannot  at 
the  time  be  sung  in  his  own 
\  church) 


\ 


XIV 


ANALYTICAL  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 


PAGE 

[The  Hymns  of  the  Oxford  Movement] 

19.  There  is  a  Green  Hill  Far  Away.  Cecil  F. 

Alexander,  1848 . 220 

20.  Art  Thou  Weary,  Art  Thou  Languid.  John 

Mason  Neale,  1862 . 232 

21.  Saviour,  Again  to  Thy  Dear  Name  We  Raise. 

John  Ellerton,  1866 . 245 

22.  The  Church's  One  Foundation.  Samuel  J. 

Stone,  1866 . 255 

( hymns  of  the  High  Church  Party 
who  in  the  middle  of  the  century 
take  the  place  of  the  Evangelicals 
as  leaders  of  the  Church  of  England 
hymnody  and  modify  the  hymnody 
of  all  Churches ) 

[The  New  Scottish  Hymnody] 

23.  O  Love  That  Wilt  Not  Let  Me  Go.  George 

Matheson,  1882 . 268 

( one  of  the  later  hymns  of  the  Church 
of  Scotland,  whose  hymnody  is  at 
length  fully  established  on  the  same 
lines  as  in  the  Church  of  England ) 

[The  “  Gospel  Hymns  ”] 

24.  God  be  With  You  Till  We  Meet  Again.  Jere¬ 

miah  E.  Rankin,  1880 . 279 

( illustrating  the  lighter  type  of  hymn 
and  tune  introduced  under  Evangel¬ 
istic  auspices ) 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

George  Whitefield . Frontispiece 

{From  the  mezzotint  by  I  liman  Brothers) 

John  Calvin .  3 

{After  the  portrait  in  the  Museum  Boijmans,  Rotter¬ 
dam) 

The  Old  Hundredth  Psalm  Tune .  7 

{From  a  copy  of  the  Genevan  Psalter  of  1562  in  the 
author’s  collection) 

Title-page  of  “  The  Psalms  of  David  in  meeter,”  1650  .  .  .  15 

{From  a  copy  in  the  author’s  collection) 

Francis  Rous .  19 

{From  an  old  print  in  The  Presbyterian  Historical 
Society’s  collection) 

Title-page  of  the  first  edition  of  Watts’s  “  Hymns  and 

Spiritual  Songs,”  1707 .  26 

{From  a  copy  in  the  author’s  collection) 

Isaac  Watts .  29 

{From  a  photograph  of  the  portrait  by  Sir  Godfrey 
Kneller  in  the  National  Portrait  Gallery,  London) 

Charles  Wesley .  35 

{From  an  engraving  of  the  portrait  by  Gush) 

A  Page  of  the  Wesleys’  “Hymns  and  Sacred  Poems,”  1740  41 

{From  a  copy  in  the  author’s  collection) 

John  Cennick .  48 

{From  an  old  print) 

John  Byrom .  59 

{From  an  engraving  of  the  original  drawing  by  G.  Clint) 

The  Original  Manuscript  of  “  Christians,  Awake  !  ”  .  .  .  63 

{Reproduced  from  Curnock’s  edition  of  John  Wesley’s 
“  Journal  ”) 


xv 


XVI 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


William  Williams .  7 o 

{From  an  old  print  in  The  Presbyterian  Historical 
Society’s  Collection) 

The  Tune  “  Caersalem  ” .  77 

{From  the  Hymnal  of  the  Calvinistic  Methodist  Church) 

Samuel  Davies .  85 

{From  the  portrait  at  Princeton  University) 

Autograph  Preface  of  Samuel  Davies . 89 

{From  the  original  MS.  in  The  Presbyterian  Historical 
Society’s  collection) 

Whitefield’s  Monument  at  Newburyport .  92 

Walter  Shirley .  95 

{Reproduced  from  “  The  Gospel  Magazine”  for  Novem¬ 
ber,  1774) 

Two  Pages  of  the  Inghamite  Hymn  Book  of  1757 . 99 

{From  a  copy  in  the  author’s  collection) 

Autograph  Lines  from  a  Sermon  of  Toplady . 107 

{Reproduced  from  Wright’s  u  Life  of  Toplady”) 

Augustus  Montague  Toplady . 109 

{From  an  engraving  of  the  portrait  by  L.  G.  Garbrand) 

The  Crag  at  Burrington  Combe . 114 

{From  a  photograph) 

Autograph  of  “  God  of  our  Fathers  ” . 123 

{From  the  original  in  the  author’s  collection) 

Daniel  C.  Roberts . 127 

{From  a  photograph) 

John  Newton . 132 

{From  an  engraving  of  the  portrait  by  Russell) 

Autograph  Lines  from  a  Letter  of  John  Newton . 138 

{From  the  original  in  the  author’s  collection) 

William  Cowper . 145 

{From  an  engraving  of  the  portrait  by  Romney) 

The  Cowper  and  Newton  Museum,  Olney . 147 

{From  a  photograph) 


N/ 

LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS  xvii 

The  Organ  at  Which  “  Coronation  ”  was  Composed  ....  160 

( Reproduced  from  “  The  New  England  Magazine  ”) 

A  Page  from  Perronet’s  “Occasional  Verses,”  1785  ....  162 

( From  a  copy  in  the  author’s  collection ) 

Philip  Doddridge . 170 

( From  an  engraving  of  tne  portrait  made  in  1750) 

Title-page  of  Scottish  “  Translations  and  Paraphrases,” 

1781 . 175 

( From  a  copy  in  the  author’s  collection) 

James  Montgomery’s  Birth-place . 183 

( Reproduced  from  the  “  Memoir  ”  by  Holland  and 
Everett) 

James  Montgomery . 185 

(From  an  engraving  of  the  portrait  by  Chantrey) 

Autograph  of  a  Hymn  by  Montgomery . 191 

(From  the  original  in  the  author’s  collection ) 

Charlotte  Elliott . 197 

(Reproduced  from  the  “ Selections ”  from  her  Poems 
made  by  her  Sister ) 

Autograph  Note  of  Miss  Elliott . 199 

(From  the  fly  leaf  of  a  copy  of  the  “  Hours  of  Sorrow” 
in  the  author’s  collection ) 

Horatius  Bonar . 208 

(From  a  photograph ) 

Rough  Draft  of  “I  Heard  the  Voice  of  Jesus  Say”  .  .  .  214 

(Reproduced  from  “  Hymns  of  Horatius  Bonar,”  edited 
by  his  Son ) 

Cecil  Frances  Alexander . 222 

(From  a  photograph ) 

Autograph  Verse  of  Mrs.  Alexander . 225 

(From  the  original  in  the  author’s  collection ) 

John  Mason  Neale . 237 

(Reproduced  from  “ Letters  of  John  Mason  Neale”) 

Autograph  Hymn  of  Dr.  Neale . 239 

(Reproduced  from  his  “  Collected  Hymns  ”) 


XV111 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


John  Ellerton . . . 249 

( From  a  photograph) 

Autograph  of  “  Saviour,  Again  to  Thy  Dear  Name  We 

Raise  ” . 251 

( Reproduced  from  the  Historical  Edition  of  “  Hymns 
ancient  and  modern  ”) 

Autograph  Lines  of  “The  Church’s  One  Foundation”  .  .  259 

{Reproduced  from  F.  A.  Jones’s  “Familiar  Hymns  and 
Their  Authors”) 

Samuel  J.  Stone . 261 

( From  a  photograph) 

George  Matheson . 275 

( Reproduced  from  “  The  British  Monthly  ”) 

Autograph  of  “  God  be  With  You  till  we  Meet  Again  ”  .  281 

( Reproduced  from  a  facsimile) 

Jeremiah  E.  Rankin . 283 

( From  a  photograph) 


/ 


N/ 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR 

HYMNS 

I 

ALL  PEOPLE  THAT  ON  EARTH  DO  DWELL 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  “PSALM” 

1  All  people  that  on  earth  do  dwell, 

Sing  to  the  Lord  with  cheerful  voice, 

Him  serve  with  fear,  His  praise  forth  tell, 

Come  ye  before  Him  and  rejoice. 

2  The  Lord  ye  know  is  God  indeed; 

Without  our  aid  He  did  us  make; 

We  are  His  folk,  He  doth  us  feed; 

And  for  His  sheep  He  doth  us  take. 

3  O  enter  then  His  gates  with  praise, 

Approach  with  joy  His  courts  unto; 

Praise,  laud,  and  bless  His  Name  always, 

For  it  is  seemly  so  to  do. 

4  For  why?  the  Lord  our  God  is  good, 

His  mercy  is  for  ever  sure; 

His  truth  at  all  times  firmly  stood, 

And  shall  from  age  to  age  endure. 

The  Hundredth  Psalm.  Translated  into  English  me¬ 
ter  by  the  Rev.  William  Kethe,  while  an  Exile  at 
Geneva,  Switzerland. 

Note.  The  text  is  that  printed  in  the  incomplete  Metrical  Psalter 
published  in  London  by  John  Day,  1561;  without  any  changes 
except  for  the  modernizing  of  the  punctuation  and  of  some  old- 
time  spellings. 


1 


2  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

This  version  of  the  Hundredth  Psalm,  with  “  The 
Old  Hundredth  ”  Psalm  tune  that  belongs  to  it,  is  a  real 
antique.  It  is  like  a  piece  of  old  English  silver  plate, 
more  stately  and  massive  than  our  modern  make.  The 
Psalm  and  tune  have  been  sung  together,  in  England 
and  Scotland  and  America,  for  more  than  three  cen¬ 
turies  and  a  half,  and  would  be  worth  keeping  in  our 
hymnals,  if  only  for  their  associations.  For  they  take 
us  back  to  the  time  when  our  forefathers  first  began 
to  praise  God  in  His  sanctuary  in  their  own  English 
tongue.  But  in  fact  they  still  make  a  noble  hymn  of 
praise.  To  hear  it  sung  solidly  and  reverently  by  a 
great  congregation,  with  the  support  of  the  full  organ,  is 
a  religious  experience.  It  gives  one’s  faith  a  fresh  grip 
on  the  big  and  holy  things  that  “  shall  from  age  to  age 
indure.” 


THE  STORY  OF  “OLD  HUNDRED  ” 

It  begins  in  Geneva.  The  city  of  Geneva  lies  within 
that  part  of  Switzerland  where  the  people  speak  French 
and  not  German.  John  Calvin  went  there  in  1536  to 
help  on  the  Reformation.  He  was  a  very  shrewd  French¬ 
man,  and  knew  as  well  as  Luther  did  that  the  best  way 
to  arouse  the  hearts  of  the  people  was  to  get  them  to 
singing  religious  songs.  He  asked  to  be  allowed  to  make 
a  start  by  having  the  children  taught  to  sing  Psalms  in 
church,  till  the  congregation  should  get  familiar  with 
them  and  feel  moved  to  join  in.  But  Calvin’s  rather 
severe  way  of  looking  at  things,  together  no  doubt  with 
the  uncompromising  vigor  of  his  character,  very  quickly 
got  him  disliked  both  by  the  rulers  and  the  people.  Be¬ 
fore  any  of  his  plans  could  be  tried  out,  he  was  banished. 


4 


JOHN  CALVIN 


4 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Calvin  found  himself  the  pastor  of  a  little  flock 
of  French  Protestant  refugees  in  Strasburg,  where  all 
the  German  Protestants  around  them  were  singing  the 
new  hymns  Luther  and  his  friends  had  written  for 
them.  Calvin  took  some  of  the  German  tunes,  set  them 
to  a  few  Bible  Psalms  and  canticles  translated  into 
French  verse,  and  printed  them  in  a  thin  Psalm  book 
for  his  congregation.  But  he  took  none  of  the  German 
hymns.  He  was  a  bit  suspicious  of  hymns.  It  is  so 
easy,  he  thought,  to  slip  false  doctrines  beneath  the 
pretty  phrases  of  poetry,  and  to  lodge  them  in  the 
singers’  hearts.  Why  not  sing  the  songs  God  has  given 
us  in  the  Bible,  the  Psalms,  especially?  Surely  they 
are  the  best,  true  because  inspired,  and  quite  as  beauti¬ 
ful  as  any  man-made  hymns. 

When  they  recalled  Calvin  to  Geneva,  one  of  the 
conditions  of  his  return  was  that  he  should  have  his 
own  way  about  singing  Psalms  in  church.  And  his 
own  way  took  shape  in  a  somewhat  larger  Psalm  book, 
with  some  new  versifyings  of  Psalms  by  the  popular 
poet,  Clement  Marot,  and  some  fresh  tunes  by  an 
excellent  French  musician  whom  Calvin  got  to  help  him. 
Our  familiar  “  Old  Hundred  ”  is  the  tune  composed 
by  Louis  Bourgeois  to  fit  the  meter  of  the  One  Hundred 
and  Thirty-fourth  Psalm,  in  an  enlarged  edition  of  this 
Genevan  Psalm  Book  printed  in  1551.  How  it  became 
the  One  Hundredth  and  not  the  One  Hundredth  and 
Thirty-fourth  Psalm  tune,  we  are  now  to  see. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  “  PSALM  ” 

Switzerland  and  England  were  far  apart  in  those 
days.  But  Calvin’s  doctrines  and  his  doings  at  Geneva 


ALL  PEOPLE  THAT  ON  EARTH  DO  DWELL 


5 

were  well  known  in  London.  The  English  Protestants 
had  come  to  take  Calvin  rather  than  Luther  as  their 
model  and  leader.  When  they  put  together  their  first 
English  Prayer  Book,  their  thought  had  been  to  depart 
as  little  as  might  be  from  the  structure  and  ceremonies 
of  the  Latin  Mass  Book  and  Breviary  of  the  old  Church. 
But  the  Prayer  Book  of  1549  was  hardly  printed  before 
Cranmer  began  to  make  changes  of  a  kind  that  Calvin 
would  approve  of.  And  the  second  Prayer  Book  of  1552 
was  a  very  different  book,  more  Protestant,  more  Cal- 
vinistic  even.  By  that  time  many  were  hoping  to  drop 
the  Prayer  Book  altogether,  and  use  the  simpler  services 
Calvin  had  prepared  for  Geneva.  They  had  already 
begun  to  sing  metrical  Psalms  in  church  after  Calvin’s 
model  —  an  innovation  in  which  the  Chapel  Royal  itself 
took  the  lead.  Just  then  the  boy  king,  Edward  VI,  died. 
The  Roman  Catholic  Queen  Mary  came  to  the  throne, 
and  many  of  the  Protestants  fled  the  country. 

A  little  company  of  these  exiles,  of  the  sort  soon  to 
be  called  Puritans,  settled  at  Frankfort.  There  they 
felt  free  to  simplify  their  worship.  But  they  were  soon 
joined  by  another  party  of  more  churchly  proclivities, 
who  insisted  that  the  full  Prayer  Book  services  be 
reinstated.  That  led  to  the  historic  “  Troubles  at 
Frankfort.”  The  Puritan  party  left,  and  went  to  Ge¬ 
neva  to  be  under  the  wing  of  Calvin.  There  they  formed 
an  English  church,  with  the  Scotchman,  John  Knox, 
as  one  of  its  pastors. 

The  Englishmen  were  deeply  moved  by  the  sight  of 
Calvin’s  great  congregation  in  the  old  cathedral,  with 
their  little  Psalm  books  in  their  own  hands,  by  the 
great  volume  of  voices  praising  God  in  their  own  French 
tongue,  and  by  the  beautiful  melodies  carrying  the  words, 


6 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


by  the  fervor  of  the  singing  and  the  spiritual  uplift  of  the 
singers.  The  English  exiles  felt  that  their  ideals  of 
pure  worship  were  realized,  and  had  a  vision  of  the 
cathedrals  and  parish  churches  at  home,  freed  of  “  the 
last  dregs  of  popery  ”  and  filled  with  the  sound  of 
many  voices  praising  God  in  the  holy  songs  He  had 
put  into  their  mouths. 

They  had  with  them  a  few  Psalms  that  had  been  versi¬ 
fied  at  home,  and  now  they  proceeded  to  prepare  an 
English  Psalm  Book  with  tunes  in  it,  just  like  Calvin’s. 
There  were  scholars  among  them  who  could  translate 
Psalms  from  the  original  Hebrew  and  several  who  could 
turn  the  translations  into  respectable  English  verse. 
The  tunes  were  their  greatest  bother,  because  the  meters 
of  the  tunes  the  Genevans  were  singing  would  be  awk¬ 
ward  to  Englishmen.  There  was  one  tune,  however, 
that  to  the  One  Hundred  and  Thirty-fourth  Psalm,  in 
what  we  call  “  long  meter,”  that  seemed  available  and 
was  certainly  beautiful.  And  for  its  sake  one  of  the 
exiles,  William  Kethe,  chose  the  Hundredth  Psalm  to 
translate  into  that  meter.  And  the  words  of  his 
Psalm,  “  All  people  that  on  earth  do  dwell,”  were  then 
and  there  married  to  Bourgeois’  tune  in  a  union  so  close 
and  so  lasting  that  it  is  hard  to  say  which  is  “  The 
Old  Hundredth.” 

Queen  Mary’s  reign  was  happily  as  short  as  Edward’s, 
and  the  exiles  did  not  stay  at  Geneva  long  enough  to 
complete  their  Psalm  Book.  Kethe’s  Psalm  appeared 
in  their  last  edition,  containing  eighty-seven  Psalms. 
That  was  printed  in  1561,  and  by  that  time  most  of  the 
exiles  had  come  home.  The  complete  edition  of  the 
English  Psalter  was  prepared  at  London,  printed  there 
in  1562.  It  was  called  The  whole  Booke  oj  Psalms,  col - 


f '  A  V  C  X  XX  XIII. 

iii 


337 


*  Aaron  le  Preitre  de  la  Loy. 
a  Etqui depfus la tefte vient defccndrc 
lufqu’a  la barbe,&  en  fin  &  vient  rendre 
Aux  bords  du  facre  vehement; 

Comme  l’humeur  fe  voir  iournellcmcn. 

Du  monr  Hermon>&  Sion  dccourir, 

Et  1c  pays  d’cmbas  noarrir: , 

5  Ainfi  pour  vray  cede  aflennbkc  heurcufe 
Sent  du  Seigneur  la-faueur  plan6ireufc» 

Voire  pour  iarnais  r.e  mourir. 
lue^vtnc  bcntdicilt.  !>  S  E.  C  X  X  X  LI  I  I.  T.  DE  BE. 
n  admm»4hki  fart  tmr  dm*  M  0mtmt  Jtlifknmdi 

Uli!.  _ — - - - - 


!  ~  k  fus,  feruiteurs  du  Seigneur ,  Vous 

L  .x  A.  ^  t  ^ * ' 

f 


qui  dc  mat  ch  fon  bonneur  Dedans  fa  maifcrn 


ju  r _ _ _ * _ 


le  fcrucz)Loue2-le,& fon notn  ofleucz. 

„  Lcuezles  mains  au  plus  faint  lieu 
Dece  tref-faint  temple  de  Dic'u* 

Et  le  los  qu’il  a  mcrirc 
Soit  par  vos  bouebes  recite.  ^ 

3  Dieuqui  a  fair  &  entretient, 

Et  terre  &  ciel  par  fon  pouuoir, 


THE  ORIGINAL  OF  “  OLD  HUNDRED.”  FROM  CALVIN^ 

PSALM  BOOK,  1562 


8 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


lected  into  English  metre,  but  is  familiarly  known  as 
“  Sternhold  and  Hopkins.” 

A  strange  thing  is  that  Kethe’s  Hundredth  Psalm 
was  not  in  it.  A  less  attractive  version  took  its  place. 
Kethe’s  first  appeared  again  in  an  appendix  of  1564  and 
in  its  proper  place  the  following  year.  How  that  hap¬ 
pened  we  shall  never  know. 

The  Puritan  exiles’  dream  of  a  Church  of  England  in 
which  Calvin’s  Genevan  order  of  worship  should  re¬ 
place  the  Prayer  Book,  was  never  to  be  realized.  But 
they  did  succeed  in  rooting  firmly  on  English  soil  the 
Calvinistic  ideal  and  practice  of  having  the  congrega¬ 
tion’s  praise  confined  to  the  songs  of  Scripture.  The 
Prayer  Book  and  the  Psalm  Book  flourished  side  by 
side.  The  curious  result  of  this  arrangement  was  to 
provide  the  Church  of  England  with  a  double  system 
of  Psalmody,  —  the  prose  Psalms  already  in  the  Prayer 
Book,  and  now  its  metrical  Psalms  in  the  Psalm  Book. 
But  there  were  no  hymn  books  in  the  pews  till  after 
the  Evangelical  Revival  of  the  eighteenth  century. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  “PSALM” 

As  to  the  author  of  the  Hundredth  Psalm  itself, 
the  Bible  gives  us  no  information.  As  to  William 
Kethe,  who  made  this  English  version,  we  know  very 
little.  We  do  not  know  what  he  did  in  Edward  Vi’s 
time.  The  old  authorities  call  him  a  Scotchman.  We 
know  he  was  one  of  those  who  exiled  themselves  to 
escape  the  attentions  of  bloody  Mary.  He  was  one 
of  the  English  congregation  of  rather  radical  Protestants 
at  Frankfort,  and  left  there  to  go  with  them  to 
Geneva,  where  he  became  prominent  in  the  English 


ALL  PEOPLE  THAT  ON  EARTH  DO  DWELL  9 

Church.  He  was  nearer  to  being  a  poet  than  were  any 
of  his  colleagues,  and  contributed  twenty-four  ver¬ 
sions  to  the  exiles’  Psalm  Book.  Besides  his  Psalms  he 
wrote  poems  and  religious  ballads :  his  “  Tye  thy  mare, 
Tom  boye  ”  becoming  quite  noted.  He  helped  also  in  the 
translation  of  the  Bible,  which  was  another  achieve¬ 
ment  of  the  English  exiles  at  Geneva.  When  he  went 
home  he  was  made  rector  of  a  church  in  Dorset,  and 
was  chaplain  to  the  English  troops  in  an  expedition  to 
Havre  and  in  a  later  campaign  against  Popish  rebels  in 
the  north.  The  preaching  of  a  sermon  in  1571  is  the 
latest  record  we  have  of  Kethe’s  life,  though  it  may  have 
continued  till  the  appointment  in  1608  of  a  successor 
in  his  Dorset  rectorate. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  The  English  Metrical  Psalms  were  printed  com¬ 
plete  about  two  years  before  Shakespeare  was  born, 
in  April,  1564.  The  Psalm  Book  seems  to  have  been  used 
in  the  homes  as  a  religious  primer  as  well  as  at  church. 
At  any  rate,  the  people  in  Shakespeare’s  time  were  re¬ 
quired  by  law  to  go  to  church  regularly,  and  he  became 
very  familiar  with  the  Metrical  Psalms.  He  quotes 
from  the  Psalm  Book  several  times.  Indeed  if  we 
are  to  follow  the  modern  text  of  his  plays,  he  singles  out 
this  Hundredth  Psalm  for  mention  in  The  Merry  Wives 
of  Windsor  (Act  II,  scene  i),  speaking  of  the  awkward¬ 
ness  of  singing  “  The  Hundredth  Psalm  to  the  tune  of 
‘  Green  Sleeves.’  ”  And  we  are  at  liberty  to  conclude 
that  Shakespeare  was  especially  impressed  by  the  sing¬ 
ing  of  the  Hundredth  Psalm  to  the  familiar  tune. 

But  the  old  texts  of  the  play  do  not  read  “  the  Hun- 


10 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


dredth  Psalm,”  but  “  the  hundred  psalms.”  The  present 
writer  has  given  elsewhere  *  his  reasons  for  thinking  the 
old  text  correct,  and  that  it  refers  to  the  title  of  a  book 
printed  at  London  in  1561  for  the  Dutch  and  Flemish 
refugees  in  England,  and  called  Hondert  Psalmen 
Dauids.  The  predilection  of  these  foreigners  for  Psalm 
singing  is  noticed  by  Shakespeare  more  than  once. 

In  Longfellow’s  The  Courtship  of  Miles  Standish  there 
is  also  a  reference  to  the  Hundredth  Psalm  in  metre, 
when  John  Alden  heard 

“  the  musical  voice  of  Priscilla 
Singing  the  hundredth  Psalm,  the  grand  old  Puritan  anthem, 
Music  that  Luther  sang  to  the  sacred  words  of  the  Psalmist.” 

The  reference  here  is  to  the  tune  “  Old  Hundred,”  under 
the  supposition  that  it  was  one  of  the  Lutheran  chorales. 
But  the  words  Priscilla  sang  were  from  Henry  Ains¬ 
worth’s  version  of  the  Psalm  in  his  The  Book  of  Psalms: 
Englished  both  in  prose  and  metre.  This  was  printed 
in  Amsterdam  in  1612,  and  was  the  Psalm  Book  the 
Pilgrim  fathers  brought  to  Plymouth. 

2.  Like  the  lettering  on  an  ancient  stone,  the  text  of 
Kethe’s  Psalm  is  read  differently  by  different  people. 
The  first  to  give  a  new  reading  was  an  early  printer 
of  the  Metrical  Psalms  who  mistook  the  word  “  folck  ” 
(folk,  people)  in  line  seven.  He  printed  it  “  flock  ”  and 
was  followed  by  later  printers  of  the  Psalm  Book  and 
by  most  modern  hymn  books.  In  the  Scottish  Psalm 
Book  “  Him  serve  with  fear  ”  is  changed  to  “  Him 
serve  with  mirth,”  and  “  The  Lord  ye  know  ”  to  “  Know 
that  the  Lord.”  Are  such  changes  worth  while?  The 
Hymnal  text  is  an  attempt  to  print  the  original  without 

*  In  the  Journal  of  the  Presbyterian  Historical  Society  for 
June,  1918. 


ALL  PEOPLE  THAT  ON  EARTH  DO  DWELL  n 

change  except  for  the  ancient  spellings  such  as  “  yt  ” 
for  “  that,”  “  ye  ”  for  “  the,”  “  shep  ”  for  “  sheep,” 
“  indure  ”  for  “  endure.”  It  is  a  puzzle  whether  we 
should  retain  the  question  mark  after  “For  why?”  as 
it  means  simply  “  because.”  But  why  not?  We  like  an 
antique  for  its  very  quaintness. 

3.  The  melodies  Calvin  had  prepared  for  his  Psalm 
Book  are  very  lovely.  But  it  has  not  proved  easy  to 
bring  them  back  into  use.  “  St.  Michael  ”  and  “  Au¬ 
tumn  ”  in  The  Hymnal  are  arranged  from  Genevan 
melodies,  but  these  have  been  subjected  to  rough  treat¬ 
ment.  The  facsimile  will  show  how  we  have  changed 
the  rhythm  and  movement  even  of  “  Old  Hundred  ” 
by  making  all  the  notes  of  equal  length.  We  have  done 
it  to  our  loss,  many  musicians  think,  and  they  are  anx¬ 
ious  to  have  the  tune  restored  to  its  original  beauty. 


II 


THE  LORD’S  MY  SHEPHERD,  I’LL  NOT 

WANT 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  “PSALM” 

1  The  Lord’s  my  Shepherd,  I’ll  not  want; 

He  makes  me  down  to  lie 
In  pastures  green,  He  leadeth  me 
The  quiet  waters  by. 

2  My  soul  He  doth  restore  again; 

And  me  to  walk  doth  make 
Within  the  paths  of  righteousness, 

Ev’n  for  His  own  Name’s  sake. 

3  Yea,  though  I  walk  in  death’s  dark  vale, 

Yet  will  I  fear  none  ill; 

For  thou  art  with  me,  and  Thy  rod 
And  staff  me  comfort  still. 

4  My  table  Thou  hast  furnished 

In  presence  of  my  foes; 

My  head  Thou  dost  with  oil  anoint, 

And  my  cup  overflows. 

5  Goodness  and  mercy  all  my  life 

Shall  surely  follow  me; 

And  in  God’s  house  for  evermore 
My  dwelling-place  shall  be. 

The  Twenty-third  Psalm  in  meter,  as  approved  by  the 
General  Assembly  of  the'  Church  of  Scotland  in  1649: 
based  on  versions  by  Francis  Rous,  Sir  William 
Mure,  and  others. 


12 


THE  LORD’S  MY  SHEPHERD,  I’LL  NOT  WANT  13 

Note.  The  text  (apart  from  a  few  spellings)  is  the  original  text 
of  The  Psalms  of  David  in  meeter,  1650,  with  the  exception 
of  the  seventh  line.  In  the  writer’s  copy  that  line  begins  with 
“  Into  ”  and  not  “  Within.”  The  alteration  was  made  at  an  early 
date,  perhaps  for  euphony’s  sake,  and  “  Within  ”  became  the  ac¬ 
cepted  reading  of  the  authorized  editions  of  The  Psalms  in  meeter. 


THE  PSALM  THAT  “NEVER  RUNS  DRY  ” 

The  Hundredth  Psalm,  treated  in  our  first  study,  was 
one  of  the  songs  of  the  English  Reformation.  This  ver¬ 
sion  of  the  Twenty-third  is  of  Oliver  Cromwell’s  time, 
and  is  altogether  Scottish  and  Presbyterian  in  its  origin, 
its  use,  and  its  associations.  It  is  one  of  The  Psalms  of 
David  in  meeter  adopted  by  the  Church  of  Scotland  in 
1649,  commonly  called  “  Rous’s  Version  ”  or  “  Rous  ” 
for  short.  Its  real  story  can  never  be  written.  It  was 
spelled  out  in  the  religious  experiences  of  the  most  self- 
contained  people  on  earth,  the  Scots. 

The  story  begins  with  the  printing  of  the  Psalms  in 
meter  at  the  end  of  the  Scottish  Bibles,  in  a  day  when 
there  were  very  few  books  in  the  cottages,  and  the  sing¬ 
ing  of  them  twice  a  day  at  family  worship  as  well  as  at 
church.  Gradually  the  Psalms  in  meter  became,  even 
more  than  the  prose  Bible  Psalms,  the  special  word  of 
God  to  His  people  in  Scotland  on  every  occasion  of 
their  lives,  and  especially  in  their  times  of  trouble. 
There  were  Psalms  that  appealed  to  the  dour  side  of 
the  Scot  and  roused  and  sustained  his  combative  in¬ 
stincts.  But  there  was  also  a  side  of  real  tenderness 
in  the  Scottish  heart;  and  this  Twenty-third  Psalm  in 
meter,  most  of  all,  touched  it  and  brought  it  peace. 

Word  by  word,  every  line  of  this  Psalm  was  engraved 
on  the  memory  and  clasped  to  the  heart  of  generation 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


14 

after  generation  of  loyal  Scots.  It  was  a  home  song, 
first  of  all,  learned  at  the  mother’s  knee,  a  household 
word ;  and  then,  as  the  children  grew  up  and  went  out 
of  the  old  home,  a  possession,  or  rather  a  part  of  their 
inmost  selves,  that  went  with  them  wherever  they  trav¬ 
eled  or  found  new  homes;  an  inward  vision  of  pastures 
green,  a  rod  and  staff  of  comfort  on  the  way,  and  at  the 
end  a  light  in  death’s  dark  vale. 

It  would  not  be  difficult  to  collect  incidents  testify¬ 
ing  to  the  intense  feeling  of  the  Scots  for  their  Psalms 
in  meeter,  and  for  this  Twenty-third  Psalm  in  particular. 
Better  still  for  such  a  purpose  is  a  story  of  Ian  Mac- 
laren,  who  understood  so  well  the  heart  of  his  country¬ 
men.  It  is  the  story  of  an  old  Scot,  hard  and  rugged,  but 
laid  low  at  last  on  one  of  the  beds  of  an  English  hospital 
ward.  He  had  just  been  told  that  he  would  die  at  break 
of  day,  but  he  had  declined  the  ministrations  of  the 
chaplain,  an  Episcopalian.  “  He  micht  want  to  read  a 
prayer,  and  a’  cudna  abide  that.” 

In  the  afternoon  a  good  lady  who  had  heard  of  the  old 
man’s  loneliness  came  to  his  bedside  and  asked  if  she 
might  not  sing  some  comforting  hymn,  opening  the  book 
to  find  “  Rock  of  Ages.”  He  shook  his  head. 

“  Ye’re  verra  kind,  mem,  and  a’m  muckle  obleeged  to 
ye,  but  a’m  a  Scot  and  ye’re  English,  and  ye  dinna  under¬ 
stand.  A’  my  days  hev  I  been  protestin’  against  the  use 
o’  human  hymns  in  the  praise  o’  God;  a’ve  left  three 
kirks  on  that  account,  and  raised  my  testimony  in  pub¬ 
lic  places,  and  noo  wud  ye  send  me  into  eternity  wi’  the 
sough  o’  hymn  in  my  ears? 

“  Ye’ll  excuse  me,  mem,  for  a’m  no  ungratefu’,”  he 
continued,  “  and  I  wud  like  to  meet  yir  wishes  when 
ye’ve  been  so  kind  to  me.  The  doctor  says  I  canna  live 


1 


■<<. . . 


IN  MEET-E  R. 

N^wljr  tranflated  ,  and  diligently  compared 

with  tin?  onginaSlTm  ,  and  funner  tranflstioru  : 
Mur«  (month  ,  and  agreeable  to  the  Text  < 
then  any  heretofore, 


Aiiesnbiy  of  the  Kirk  of  &uU«t ,  ,w<{. 


■  *- . .  .  . . . ? 

■  * 

.>/  ■  . ' 

v-0  | 

yr  -  ”  -V  ■'  t '  ,,  -/xc 

" 

■  '  k 

■ 

edinbfrgh. 

■ 

•  - 

Printed  by  Erin  TjUr,  Printer  to  the  Kings 
mod  Excellent  Majtfty  ,  i6jq. 

U* 

- - - ! - 

TITLE-PAGE  OF  THE  SCOTTISH  PSALMS  OF  1650 


1 6  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

long,  and  it’s  possible  that  my  strength  may  sune  give 
way,  but  all  tell  ye  what  a’m  willin’  to  do. 

“  Sae  lang  as  a’ve  got  strength  and  my  reason  continues 
clear,  a’m  prepared  to  argue  with  you  concerning  the 
lawfulness  of  using  onything  except  the  Psalms  o’  David 
in  the  praise  o’  God  either  in  public  or  in  private.” 

“  No,  no,”  the  lady  said,  “  I  did  not  know  the  feeling 
of  the  Scots  about  hymns.  But  I  have  been  in  the  High¬ 
lands,  and  learned  to  love  your  Psalms.  I  have  some  in 
my  book  here.” 

“  Div  ye  think  that  ye  cud  sing  the  Twenty-third 
Psalm  — 

“  ‘  The  Lord’s  my  Shepherd,  a’ll  not  want  ’  ? 

for  I  wud  count  it  verra  comfortin.’  ” 

“  Yes,”  she  said,  “  I  can,  and  I  think  I  love  that 
Psalm  more  than  any  hymn.” 

“  It  never  runs  dry,”  murmured  the  Scot. 

So  she  sang  it  from  beginning  to  end  slowly  and  rever¬ 
ently,  as  she  had  heard  it  in  Scotland.  He  joined  in  no 
word,  but  ever  he  kept  time  with  his  hand ;  and,  after 
she  ceased,  “  Thank  ye,  thank  ye,”  he  said,  and  then 
both  were  silent  for  a  few  minutes,  because  she  saw  that 
he  was  in  his  own  country,  and  did  not  wish  to  bring  him 
back. 

“  Mem,  ye’ve  dune  me  the  greatest  kindness  ony 
Christian  cud  do  for  anither  as  he  stands  on  the  banks 
of  the  Jordan.” 

For  a  minute  he  was  silent  again,  and  then  he  said: 

“  A’m  gaein’  to  tell  ye  somethin’,  and  I  think  ye’ll 
understand.  Ma  wife  and  me  wes  married  thirty-five 
years,  and  ilka  nicht  of  oor  married  life  we  sang  a  Psalm 
afore  we  gaed  to  rest.  She  took  the  air  and  a’  took  the 
bass,  and  we  sang  the  Psalms  through  frae  beginning  to 


THE  LORD'S  MY  SHEPHERD,  I’LL  NOT  WANT  17 

end  twal  times.  She  was  taken  frae  me  ten  year  ago, 
and  the  nicht  afore  she  dee’d  we  sang  the  Twenty-third 
Psalm.  A’ve  never  sung  the  Psalm  since,  and  a’  didna 
join  wi’  ye  when  ye  sang  it,  for  a’111  waitin’  to  sing  it 
wi’  her  noo  in  oor  Father’s  hoose  the  mornin’s  mornin’, 
where  there’ll  be  nae  nicht  nor  partin’  evermore.” 

THE  STORY  OF  ROUS’S  VERSION 

We  spoke  in  the  first  study  of  the  little  church  of 
English  exiles  in  Queen  Mary’s  time  at  Geneva,  with 
John  Knox  as  pastor,  and  of  the  English  Psalm  Book 
which  they  worked  at  and  carried  home  to  England, 
where  it  was  completed  in  1562.  When  Knox  went  home 
to  Scotland  he  also  took  that  Psalm  Book,  and  there  it 
was  completed  in  much  the  same  way,  and  printed  in 
1564.  And  so  the  Episcopalians  in  England  and  the  Pres¬ 
byterians  in  Scotland  became  Psalm  singers  in  Calvin’s 

fashion. 

* 

The  Scots  kept  on  using  the  old  Psalm  Book  for  nearly 
a  century.  That  brings  us  down  to  the  effort  of  Charles 
I  to  turn  the  Church  of  Scotland  into  an  episcopal 
Church,  and  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War  in  1639. 
Charles  needed  money  to  suppress  the  Scots,  and  had 
to  call  a  Parliament  to  provide  it.  But  the  Parliament, 
mostly  Puritans,  declared  war  on  Charles  himself ;  and 
to  secure  the  aid  of  the  Scots,  united  with  them  in  the 
Solemn  League  and  Covenant  of  1643,  to  preserve  the 
Presbyterian  Church  in  Scotland  and  to  set  it  up  in 
England  and  Ireland.  Then  it  was  that  the  famous 
Westminster  Assembly  was  called,  to  prepare  common 
standards  of  faith  and  worship  for  the  three  kingdoms. 
It  was  agreed  on  all  hands  that  the  churches  should  sing 


I g  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

Psalms  and  not  hymns.  But  what  version  of  the 
Psalms?  The  Assembly  recommended  the  Parliament 
to  adopt  a  new  version  made  by  one  of  its  own  members, 
Francis  Rous. 

He  was  an  English  gentleman  of  much  distinction, 
a  Calvinist  by  conviction,  a  believer  in  the  Presbyte¬ 
rian  system,  and  several  times  a  member  of  Parliament. 
He  was  sent  to  the  Westminster  Assembly  as  a  lay  com¬ 
missioner,  and  was  afterward  Provost  of  Eton  College. 
He  made  his  metrical  version  of  the  Psalms  in  hope  of 
meeting  the  widespread  demand  among  the  Puritans  of 
the  time  for  a  more  exact  and  literal  rendering  than  that 
contained  in  the  old  Psalm  Books  of  England  and 
Scotland. 

It  seems  a  bit  odd  to  us,  who  take  such  things  lightly 
enough,  that  Parliament  should  wrangle  over  the  par¬ 
ticular  version  of  the  Psalms  to  be  used  in  church.  It 
did  not  seem  so  then.  The  House  of  Commons  agreed 
to  adopt  Rous’s  Version  and  ordered  that  it  and  none 
other  be  sung  in  all  the  churches  of  the  Kingdom.  But 
a  rival  of  Rous,  one  William  Barton,  had  many  friends 
in  the  House  of  Lords,1  who  put  up  a  stiff  fight  for  his 
version,  and  when  the  Commons’  adoption  of  Rous 
came  there  for  concurrent  action,  they  succeeded  in 
shelving  it  by  having  it  referred  to  a  committee. 

It  did  not  matter  much,  for  this  first  “  Presbyterian 
Alliance  ”  was  soon  to  be  broken  up.  The  Church  of 
Scotland,  left  alone  again,  adopted  the  standards  of  the 
Westminster  Assembly,  but  hesitated  about  the  Psalm 
Book.  Finally,  after  three  years  of  debating  and  tinker¬ 
ing,  they  adopted  Rous’s  Version,  though  it  had  been  so 
much  altered  and  added  to  that  it  hardly  deserved  to 
bear  his  name.  Such  as  it  was,  it  continued  to  be  the 


FRANCIS  ROUS,  1 656 


20 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


only  praise  book  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  until  recent 
times,  when  the  right  to  sing  “  hymns  of  human  com¬ 
posure  ”  has  been  won  after  bitter  struggles.  “  Rous  ” 
was  brought  to  this  country  also  by  the  Scotch  and  Irish 
immigrants,  and  was  the  chief  Psalm  Book  of  the  Pres¬ 
byterian  Churches  in  America. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  Seventeen  Presbyterian  or  Reformed  denomina¬ 
tions  in  various  countries,  some  of  them  very  small,  still 
confine  their  praise  to  Bible  Psalms  and  reject  human 
hymns.  So  “  the  subject  matter  of  praise  ”  must  still 
be  a  topic  for  discussion.  These  denominations  seem  to 
agree  that  God  intended  the  Book  of  Psalms  to  be 
the  only  praise  book  of  His  Church  until  the  end  of  time. 
As  lately  as  1905,  two  conventions  were  held  under  the 
direction  of  the  General  Assembly  of  the  United  Pres¬ 
byterian  Church  of  North  America,  “  to  promote  the 
claims  of  the  Psalms  in  the  field  of  worship.”  And  the 
papers  at  these  gatherings  have  been  printed  in  an  im¬ 
posing  volume.  It  is  doubtful,  however,  whether  the 
cause  was  materially  advanced  by  these  means,  or 
whether  in  the  minds  of  the  great  majority  of  Chris¬ 
tians  the  old  issue  of  Psalm  versus  Hymn  is  either  alive 
or  capable  of  revival. 

2.  There  are  four  versions  of  the  Twenty-third 
Psalm  in  The  Hymnal  revised . 

The  first  is  the  one  we  are  now  discussing.  Those  who 
have  inherited  Scottish  blood  and  traditions  very  likely 
feel  that  it  has  passed  beyond  the  pale  of  criticism. 

The  second,  “  The  Lord  my  pasture  shall  prepare,” 
was  contributed  to  the  famous  weekly,  The  Spectator, 
by  the  Right  Honorable  Joseph  Addison.  He  was  a  de- 


THE  LORD’S  MY  SHEPHERD ,  DLL  NOT  WANT  2 1 

lightful  writer,  and  a  gentle  wind  still  blows  over  the 
“  verdant  landscape  ”  of  his  Psalm.  It  is  quite  true, 
however,  as  Canon  Douglass  has  said,  that  Addison  was 
a  great  deal  more  fond  of  adjectives  than  David  was. 

The  third,  “  The  Lord  my  Shepherd  is,”  one  of  Dr. 
Isaac  Watts’s  versifications,  is  hardly  one  of  his  suc¬ 
cesses.  It  is  so  hard  and  jerky.  It  was  put  in  The 
Hymnal  to  gratify  a  prominent  elder  and  warm  friend 
of  that  book,  who  had  associations  with  it.  But  he  does 
not  need  it  any  longer,  and  the  Watts  version  might 
well  be  allowed  to  drop  out. 

The  fourth,  “  The  King  of  love  my  Shepherd  is,” 
represents  the  perfection  of  what  we  may  call  the 
modern  “  art  and  craft  ”  of  hymn-making.  “  How 
beautiful  are  Thy  thoughts  unto  me,  O  God !  ”  the  writer 
seems  to  be  saying,  as  his  pen  flows  on  from  verse  to 
verse  of  the  old  Psalm.  It  is  a  gospel  Psalm  to  him,  with 
Christ,  the  Good  Shepherd,  holding  the  cross  to  guide 
him.  The  Rev.  Sir  Henry  Williams  Baker  wrote  it  for 
the  appendix  to  his  Hymns  ancient  and  modern,  the 
most  famous  hymnal  of  recent  times.  And  when  he  came 
to  die,  the  last  words  that  could  be  distinguished  were: 

“  And  on  His  shoulder  gently  laid, 

And  home,  rejoicing,  brought  me.” 

3.  In  the  old  days  “The  Lord’s  my  Shepherd,  I’ll  not 
want  ”  was  sung  to  one  of  the  still  older  Scottish  Psalm 
tunes,  often  perhaps  to  the  one  they  called  “  French  ” 
and  we  call  “  Dundee.”  In  modern  days  it  is  set  to 
“  Balerma  ”  as  often  as  to  any  other ;  also  a  Scottish 
tune.  “Walden,”  No.  577  in  The  Hymnal  revised,  was 
composed  for  this  Psalm  by  a  Canadian  lawyer,  and  is 
well  worth  trying. 


Ill 

THERE  IS  A  LAND  OF  PURE  DELIGHT 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  There  is  a  land  of  pure  delight, 

Where  saints  immortal  reign; 

Infinite  day  excludes  the  night, 

And  pleasures  banish  pain. 

2  There  everlasting  spring  abides, 

And  never-withering  flowers; 

Death,  like  a  narrow  sea,  divides 
This  heavenly  land  from  ours. 

3  Sweet  fields  beyond  the  swelling  flood 

Stand  dressed  in  living  green; 

So  to  the  Jews  old  Canaan  stood, 

While  Jordan  rolled  between. 

4  But  timorous  mortals  start  and  shrink 

To  cross  this  narrow  sea; 

And  linger,  shivering,  on  the  brink, 

And  fear  to  launch  away. 

5  O  could  we  make  our  doubts  remove, 

Those  gloomy  doubts  that  rise, 

And  see  the  Canaan  that  we  love 
With  unbeclouded  eyes; 

6  Could  we  but  climb  where  Moses  stood, 

And  view  the  landscape  o’er. 

Not  Jordan’s  stream,  nor  death’s  cold  flood, 
Should  fright  us  from  the  shore. 

Rev.  Isaac  Watts,  1707 

Note.  The  text  is  taken  from  the  first  edition  of  Dr.  Watts’s 
Hymns  and  Spiritual  Songs,  London,  1707,  without  any  change. 


22 


THERE  IS  A  LAND  OF  PURE  DELIGHT 


23 

Isaac  Watts  was  born  on  July  17,  1674,  in  that  Eng¬ 
lish  town  of  Southampton  which  many  Americans 
know  best  as  a  port  for  steamships  to  Europe.  If  we 
went  ashore  we  should  find  a  “  Watts  Memorial  Hall  ” 
and  a  statue  of  him  in  his  gown  and  bands  as  a  preacher. 
But  it  is  his  sacred  songs  and  not  his  sermons  that  have 
given  him  his  fame.  In  Southampton  he  passed  his 
childhood,  and  there  he  spent  some  six  weeks  of  the 
year  before  this  hymn  appeared  in  his  volume  of 
Hymns  and  Spiritual  Songs  in  1707.  He  had  come  back 
to  the  old  home,  weak  from  sickness  and  discouraged 
no  doubt,  and  very  likely  these  verses  reveal  the  turn 
his  thoughts  took  just  then. 

The  town  lies  on  a  swell  of  land  within  the  fork  of 
the  Test  and  the  Itchen  rivers.  It  may  well  be  that 
the  view  across  the  water  of  the  pleasant  meadows  of 
Marchwood  on  the  one  side,  or,  on  the  other,  of  the 
lawns  of  Weston,  glowing  in  the  evening  sunlight,  sug¬ 
gested  the  lines: 

“  Sweet  fields  beyond  the  swelling  flood 
Stand  dressed  in  living  green.” 

Our  poet  Longfellow  said  that  until  he  saw  the  first 
verdure  of  spring  on  the  meadows  of  southern  England, 
he  did  not  quite  appreciate  the  meaning  of  “  dressed 
in  living  green.”  “  There  are  some  of  us,”  said  the 
Rev.  J.  Brierly,  “  who  can  never  look  upon  a  green  field 
with  the  spring  sun  on  it  without  this  hymn  coming 
to  us  as  a  whisper  from  heaven.” 

“  HYMNS  AND  SPIRITUAL  SONGS” 

The  subjects  of  our  first  two  studies  were  versions 
of  Psalms  taken  directly  from  the  Bible.  The  subject 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


24 

of  this  is  “  a  hymn  of  human  composure  ”  taken  out  of 
the  writer’s  own  heart.  And  he  did  more  than  other 
men  to  break  down  the  custom  of  Psalm  singing  and  to 
conquer  the  English  prejudice  against  uninspired  hymns. 

Tennyson  says  in  one  of  his  poems  that 

The  old  order  changeth,  yielding  place  to  new; 

And  God  fulfills  himself  in  many  ways, 

Lest  one  good  custom  should  corrupt  the  world. 

Now  we  saw  in  our  first  study  how  Calvin,  in  his  zeal 
for  “  the  Bible  only,”  determined  that  even  the  songs  of 
his  congregation  in  Geneva  should  be  taken  from  inspired 
Scripture,  and  so  started  the  custom  of  Psalm  singing. 
It  was  a  “  good  custom  ”  for  the  time.  In  France  and 
Scotland  Psalm  singing  became  the  very  life  of  the 
Reformation.  In  England  there  was  some  opposition 
to  introducing  it,  but  the  plain  people  took  it  up  vigor¬ 
ously,  and  it  soon  became  an  established  feature  of  the 
church  services.  So  the  Psalm  Books  were  bound  up 
with  the  Prayer  Books. 

The  singing  of  Psalms  went  on  without  change 
through  the  whole  of  Elizabeth’s  reign,  and  as  long 
as  the  Church  of  England  held  together.  In  the  great 
break-up  of  the  Puritan  Revolution  some  of  the  new 
sects  then  formed  —  the  Quakers,  for  instance  —  gave 
up  singing  altogether.  The  large  body  of  Independents, 
or  Congregationalists  as  we  should  call  them,  gave  up 
the  Prayer  Book  but  hung  on  to  the  old  Psalm  Book. 
They  kept  up  the  custom,  but  the  life  had  gone  out 
of  the  Psalmody.  One  of  their  young  ministers,  Isaac 
Watts,  said  that  the  singing  of  God’s  praise  is  the  part 
of  worship  nighest  heaven,  and  its  performance  among 
themselves  the  worst  on  earth.  The  Psalms  were  read 


THERE  IS  A  LAND  OF  PURE  DELIGHT 


25 

out,  one  line  at  a  time,  by  a  “  clerk,”  and  then  the  con¬ 
gregation  sang  that  line  and  waited  for  the  next.  Very 
few  tunes  were  used,  and  these  were  drawled  out  in  pro¬ 
longed  notes.  “  To  see  the  dull  indifference,  the  negligent 
and  thoughtless  air  that  sits  upon  the  faces  of  a  whole 
assembly  while  the  Psalm  is  on  their  lips,  might  tempt 
even  a  charitable  observer,”  Watts  wrote,  “  to  suspect 
the  fervency  of  inward  religion.” 

By  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century  the  Psalm 
singing  in  the  Independent  meeting-houses  was  so  dis¬ 
tressing  that  many  of  the  pastors  were  in  consultation 
upon  the  situation.  Watts,  the  youngest  and  bravest 
of  them,  had  his  own  view  of  the  root  of  the  trouble 
and  the  remedy.  The  trouble,  he  thought,  grew  out 
of  confining  the  praise  to  Psalms,  many  of  which  were 
inappropriate  to  our  circumstances,  and  all  were  on  a 
lower  plane  of  revelation  than  the  gospel.  “  We  preach 
the  gospel  and  pray  in  Christ’s  name,  and  then  check 
the  aroused  devotions  of  Christians  by  giving  out  a  song 
of  the  old  dispensation.” 

The  remedy  he  proposed  was  twofold.  First,  a  new 
and  free  translation  of  the  Psalms  written  in  the  way 
David  would  have  written  them  if  he  had  been  a  fully 
instructed  Christian  living  in  the  eighteenth  century. 
And  this  scheme  Dr.  Watts  ultimately  carried  out  in  1719 
by  publishing  his  The  Psalms  of  David  imitated  in  the 
language  of  the  New  Testament,  and  apply’ d  to  the  Chris¬ 
tian  state  and  worship.  This  book  served  as  a  bridge 
over  the  chasm  between  the  Old  Testament  Psalms  and 
the  evangelical  hymns,  by  which  many  congregations 
passed  over  without  fully  perceiving  just  where  they 
were  going. 

The  other  feature  of  Watts’s  proposed  remedy  was 


HYMNS 

AND 

Spiritual  Songs. 

In  Three  BOOKS. 

I.  Collected  from  the  Scriptures. 

II.  Compos'd  on  Divine  Subje&s. 

III.  Prepared  for  the  Lord’s  Supper. 

|  With  an  ESSAY 

Towards  the  Improvement  of  Chri- 
Itian  Pfalmody,  by  the  Ufe  of  E- 
vangelioal  Hymns  in  Worth  ip,  as 
well  as  the  Pfalms  of  J David. 


By  I.  WATTS. 

And  they  fun?  a  new  Song,  [dying.  Thou  art 
worthy,  See.  for  thou  waft  [lain  and  haft  re¬ 
deemed  ut,  Sec.  Rev.  5.  9. 

SoUti tffcr.t  (he.  Chrifffoni)  convenire,  car- 
menque  Chriflo  quad  Deo  dicere.  Viin'rn 
in  Epift. 

LONDON ; 

Printed  by  J.  Humfreys ,  for  John  Lawrence, 
at  the  Angel  in  the  Poult rey.  1707. 


TITLE-PAGE  OF  THE  FIRST  EDITION  OF  WATTSES  HYMNS 


THERE  IS  A  LAND  OF  PURE  DELIGHT 


27 

the  introduction  of  evangelical  hymns,  freely  written 
under  the  inspirations  of  the  gospel  and  expressing  all 
the  riches  that  are  in  Christ.  And  this  he  was  prepared 
to  apply  at  once.  He  had  ready,  and  printed  in  1707, 
more  than  two  hundred  of  his  own  in  a  volume  whose 
full  title  can  be  read  in  the  facsimile  here  given.  The 
essay  to  which  it  refers  was  a  rather  cruel  attack  on  the 
principles  and  prejudices  of  the  Psalm  singers,  and  a 
vindication  of  hymns.  We  have  just  the  same  right, 
he  asserted,  to  compose  and  sing  spiritual  songs  as  to 
compose  and  utter  original  prayers.  The  Bible  is  God’s 
word  to  us.  Our  songs  ought  to  be  our  word  to  God. 

Whoever  attacks  an  old  religious  custom  or  prejudice 
must  expect  to  make  enemies.  And  Watts  made  many. 
They  spoke  of  his  hymns  as  “  Watts’s  whims.”  But  he 
touched  the  hearts  of  the  people,  and  one  by  one  the 
Independent  congregations  came  under  the  spell  of  the 
new  hymns.  We  can  scarcely  appreciate  all  they 
meant  to  people  who  had  never  been  allowed  to  utter 
the  name  of  their  Saviour  in  praise.  Dr.  Doddridge 
tells  of  giving  out  “  Give  me  the  wings  of  faith  to  rise  ” 
to  a  village  congregation.  Tears  came  to  many  eyes; 
some  were  quite  unable  to  sing  at  all,  and  the  clerk  said 
he  could  hardly  speak  the  words,  as  he  lined  them 
out.  When  something  was  said  after  service  as  to  a 
possible  visit  from  Dr.  Watts,  one  of  the  company  ex¬ 
claimed,  “  The  very  sight  of  him  would  be  as  good  as 
an  ordinance  to  me!  ” 

This  popularity  of  the  hymns  is  said  to  explain  why 
so  few  copies  of  the  earlier  editions  of  Hymns  and 
Spiritual  Songs  have  survived  to  our  time:  the  theory 
being  that  the  great  majority  of  copies  were  actually 
thumbed  out  of  existence  by  rude  but  affectionate 
hands. 


28 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

“  Before  her  stood  not  an  Antinous  or  an  Adonis, 
not  even  a  moderately  presentable  Englishman,  but  a 
minute,  sallow-faced  anatomy  with  hook  nose,  promi¬ 
nent  cheek  bones,  heavy  countenance,  cadaverous  com¬ 
plexion  and  small  eyes.”  So  it  is  that  the  latest 
biographer  of  Watts  describes  him  in  the  act  of  pro¬ 
posing  to  the  beautiful  Elizabeth  Singer  somewhere 
about  1706.  That  Miss  Singer  had  formed  a  high  con¬ 
ception  of  Watts  from  his  poems  we  know,  and  that 
his  appearance  disappointed  her  we  may  assume.  But 
how  does  the  biographer  know  that  Miss  Singer  in  re¬ 
jecting  him  said,  “  Mr.  Watts,  I  only  wish  I  could  say 
that  I  admire  the  casket  as  much  as  I  admire  the  jewel  ”  ? 

It  is  more  to  the  point  to  remember  that  the  aging 
face,  beneath  its  monstrous  wig,  that  has  come  down  to 
us  in  the  portraits  may  truly  represent  the  famous  and 
venerated  Dr.  Watts,  but  not  the  somewhat  headstrong 
young  man  who  wrote  the  hymns  with  the  ardor  of 
youth,  and  gave  battle  to  the  Psalm  singers  with  that 
self-confidence  and  disregard  of  other  people’s  opin¬ 
ions  of  which  perhaps  only  youth  is  capable. 

The  household  at  Southampton  was  religious,  and  the 
boy’s  thoughts  were  serious.  “  Fell  under  considerable 
conviction  of  sin,  1688,  and  was  taught  to  trust  in  Christ, 
I  hope,  1689;  ”  so  his  diary  reads.  He  inherited  from 
his  father  a  love  of  learning  and  a  gift  for  poetry.  It 
was  like  the  plucky,  undersized  lad  to  stand  up  for  the 
principles  of  his  father,  twice  jailed  for  the  crime  of 
being  a  dissenter,  and  to  refuse  an  offer  to  pay  his  ex¬ 
penses  at  the  university,  since  admittance  there  involved 
a  profession  of  membership  in  the  Church  of  England. 


DR.  ISAAC  WATTS 


30 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Watts  prepared  for  the  ministry  deliberately,  and 
became  pastor  of  an  Independent  meeting  in  Mark  Lane, 
London.  Almost  at  once  his  health  broke,  and  the  rest 
of  his  life  was  a  struggle  between  duty  and  weakness. 
Invited  by  Sir  Thomas  Abney,  a  distinguished  dissenter, 
to  spend  a  week  in  his  magnificent  house  at  Theobalds 
in  Hertfordshire,  Watts  remained  as  an  honored  guest 
of  the  family  for  the  rest  of  his  life,  some  thirty-six 
years.  He  gave  such  service  as  he  could  to  his  long- 
suffering  congregation  in  London,  and  managed  to  write 
many  books,  useful  in  their  day,  which  gave  him  high 
reputation  in  university  circles.  He  was  probably  the 
most  widely  esteemed  dissenter  of  his  time;  but  he 
himself  regarded  his  “  Psalms  and  Hymns  ”  as  incom¬ 
parably  the  greatest  work  he  did  for  the  Church. 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

i.  In  looking  over  a  line  of  old  Sunday  school  hymn 
books,  say  from  1835  forward,  one  is  struck  with  the 
considerable  proportion  of  children’s  songs  dealing  with 
dying  and  the  life  after  death.  These  songs  reflect  the 
tone  of  evangelical  piety  that  prevailed  among  their 
elders:  what  the  great  novelist,  George  Eliot,  described 
sarcastically  as  “  otherworldliness.”  It  was  a  time 
when  Dr.  Muhlenberg’s  “  I  would  not  live  alway  ”  was 
a  favorite  for  church  use. 

Then,  gradually,  the  tone  of  piety  began  to  change. 
“  One  world  at  a  time,”  people  began  to  say,  “  and  now 
for  this  world,  where  our  duty  lies.  It  is  more  pious  to 
rectify  a  foul  drain,  to  minister  to  bodily  suffering,  to 
show  the  way  to  self-help,  and  to  equalize  the  distribu¬ 
tion  of  the  good  things  of  life,  than  it  is  to  sit  and 


THERE  IS  A  LAND  OF  PURE  DELIGHT 


31 

dream  of  heaven.”  In  our  day  the  reaction  from  “  other¬ 
worldliness  ”  is  pretty  complete.  The  heaven  that  lay 
about  us  once  and  then  got  far  enough  away  to  seem 
like  a  foreign  country,  has  now  to  very  many  lost  all 
reality  whatever.  How  seldom  now  are  these  old-time 
hymns  of  heaven  given  out  in  our  churches! 

This  present  situation  suggests  certain  questions. 
Has  the  hope  of  heaven  any  proper  place  in  Christian 
experience  or  in  our  gospel  message  to  others?  Is  it 
right  to  teach  children  to  sing  of  heaven;  and  if  not, 
what  is  a  suitable  age  at  which  those  who  love  them 
might  begin  to  make  “  mention  of  her  glory  ”  ?  Or  are 
there  good  reasons  for  thinking  the  time  has  arrived  for 
expunging  the  songs  of  the  heavenly  home  from  our 
church  hymnals? 

2.  There  are,  no  doubt,  different  types  of  hymns  of 
heaven  and  room  for  a  choice.  In  one  familiar  type  the 
singer  finds  the  body  vile  and  the  world  evil.  He  turns 
to  the  inward  vision  of  a  risen  body  and  a  dwelling 
place  free  from  temptations,  and  passionately  longs  for 
the  deliverance  of  death.  This  type  came  originally 
from  the  monks,  “  in  retreat  ”  from  the  wTorld,  and 
their  rhapsodies  are  not  for  everyone.  St.  Paul  would 
have  understood  them  and  loved  them,  but  for  most 
people  hymns  of  this  type  need  watching  in  the  interests 
of  sincerity. 

This  hymn  of  Watts  is  of  a  very  different  type.  It 
is  less  ecstatic.  And  it  breathes  no  desire  to  depart.  It 
is  the  song  of  a  young  man  who  is  at  work  and  at  play 
in  the  open  fields  of  life  where  God  put  him,  and  likes  it. 
He  does  not  want  to  go  home  till  after  sunset.  He 
loves  life.  He  loves  the  vision  of  heaven,  too,  at  twi¬ 
light  or  when  things  go  wrong,  though  he  does  not 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


32 

cherish  the  thought  of  coming  to  the  brink  of  the  nar¬ 
row  sea.  But  “  A  Prospect  of  Heaven  makes  Death 
easy  so  Dr.  Watts  entitled  his  verses.  He  meant  that 
such  a  prospect  helps  to  overcome  the  perfectly  natural 
shrinking  youth  feels  at  the  thought  of  death.  And  one 
sometimes  wonders  if  for  many  of  us,  for  most  perhaps, 
this  is  not  the  most  sincere  and  helpful  song  of  heaven 
ever  written. 

3.  A  recent  writer  in  The  Harvard  Theological 
Review ,  commenting  on  the  loveliness  of  this  hymn, 
complains  that  Watts  is  as  confident  in  regard  to 
heaven’s  features  and  geography  as  of  the  country 
around  Theobald’s,  and  he  is  tempted  to  exclaim,  “  No 
such  topography  for  me!  ”  Is  that  attitude  just? 

At  the  farewell  dinner  in  New  York  to  Charles 
Dickens,  at  the  end  of  his  last  visit  to  this  country,  the 
brilliant  George  William  Curtis,  in  closing  his  speech, 
turned  to  the  guest  and,  bending  toward  him,  said: 
“  Old  ocean  bear  him  safely  over !  England  welcome 
him  with  the  blossoms  of  May!  ”  Is  not  that  the 
thought  running  through  the  words  before  us?  Not 
the  topography  of  heaven,  not  the  landscape  of  the  un¬ 
discovered  country  —  only  the  thought  of  crossing  the 
narrow  sea  to  find  those  things  of  which  spring  and 
May  blossoms  are  the  symbol :  green  pastures  of  peace, 
the  pleasant  company  of  the  pure-hearted,  the  sunlight 
of  God’s  Presence  over  all. 


IV 


JESUS,  LOVER  OF  MY  SOUL 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

i  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul, 

Let  me  to  Thy  bosom  fly, 

While  the  nearer  waters  roll, 

While  the  tempest  still  is  high: 
Hide  me,  O  my  Saviour,  hide, 

Till  the  storm  of  life  is  past; 

Safe  into  the  haven  guide, 

O  receive  my  soul  at  last. 


2  Other  refuge  have  I  none; 

Hangs  my  helpless  soul  on  Thee; 
Leave,  ah!  leave  me  not  alone, 

Still  support  and  comfort  me. 

All  my  trust  on  Thee  is  stayed, 

All  my  help  from  Thee  I  bring; 
Cover  my  defenceless  head 
With  the  shadow  of  Thy  wing. 


3  Wilt  Thou  not  regard  my  call? 

Wilt  Thou  not  accept  my  prayer? 
Lo,  I  sink,  I  faint,  I  fall! 

Lo,  on  Thee  I  cast  my  care; 
Reach  me  out  Thy  gracious  hand! 

While  I  of  Thy  strength  receive, 
Hoping  against  hope  I  stand, 

Dying,  and  behold  I  live! 


33 


34 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4  Thou,  O  Christ,  art  all  I  want; 

More  than  all  in  Thee  I  find: 

Raise  the  fallen,  cheer  the  faint, 

Heal  the  sick,  and  lead  the  blind. 

Just  and  holy  is  Thy  Name; 

I  am  all  unrighteousness; 

False  and  full  of  sin  I  am, 

Thou  art  full  of  truth  and  grace. 

5  Plenteous  grace  with  Thee  is  found, 

Grace  to  cover  all  my  sin; 

Let  the  healing  streams  abound; 

Make  and  keep  me  pure  within. 

Thou  of  life  the  Fountain  art, 

Freely  let  me  take  of  Thee; 

Spring  Thou  up  within  my  heart, 

Rise  to  all  eternity. 

Rev.  Charles  Wesley,  1740 

Note.  The  text  is  taken  from  John  and  Charles  Wesley’s  Hymns 
and  Sacred  Poems  of  1740,  with  no  change  except  for  the  printing 
of  the  first  word  in  the  English  rather  than  the  Latin  form. 

This,  perhaps  the  best  loved  of  all  English  hymns, 
is  associated  with  the  beginnings  of  the  wonderful 
Methodist  Movement  in  the  eighteenth  century,  of 
which  John  Wesley  was  the  leader  and  his  brother 
Charles  the  poet  laureate. 

THE  WESLEYS  AND  THEIR  HYMNS 

About  the  time  when  Isaac  Watts  was  writing  and 
publishing  his  sacred  songs,  two  sons  were  born  in  the 
parsonage  of  the  village  of  Epworth  to  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Wesley  and  his  noble  wife  Susannah,  “  Mother  of  the 
Wesleys.”  She  was,  in  fact,  the  mother  of  nineteen 
of  them.  John  was  born  in  1703,  and  Charles  on  Decern- 


CHARLES  WESLEY 


* 


36  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

ber  18  of  the  very  year — 1707  —  in  which  Watts  pub¬ 
lished  those  Hymns  and  Spiritual  Songs  that  changed 
the  worship  of  the  Independent  meeting-houses.  The 
two  brothers  were  destined  to  carry  on  Watts’s  work, 
and  to  win  new  triumphs  for  hymn  singing  in  England. 
So  it  is  worth  while  to  note  that  the  atmosphere  of  the 
parsonage  was  decidedly  contemptuous  of  the  old  Psalm 
singing,  as  it  was  then  carried  on  in  village  churches. 
As  rector  of  one  of  them  the  father  had  to  endure  it. 
But  he  did  not  suffer  it  gladly,  and  said  some  very  harsh 
things  about  it.  He  was  himself  a  poet,  and  his  sons 
inherited  not  only  their  poetic  gifts  but  their  purpose  to 
write  something  to  take  the  place  of  what  John  called  the 
“  scandalous  doggerel  ”  of  the  old  metrical  Psalms. 

The  two  boys  grew  up  together  in  the  Epworth  par¬ 
sonage,  were  at  Oxford  University  together,  were  both 
ordained  as  clergymen  of  the  Church  of  England,  and 
in  October,  1735,  sailed  together  for  the  new  colony  of 
Georgia.  John  went  as  a  missionary;  Charles  nomi¬ 
nally,  at  least,  as  secretary  to  General  Oglethorpe,  Gov¬ 
ernor  of  the  colony.  In  John’s  kit  there  was  a  copy  of 
Watts’s  Psalms  and  Hymns.  And  he  was  especially 
impressed  by  the  constant  singing  of  a  group  of  German 
Moravian  colonists  on  board.  He  learned  from  them 
what  spiritual  songs  can  do  for  the  spiritual  life.  He 
studied  German  so  as  to  translate  some  of  those  so  dear 
to  his  fellow  voyagers.  In  Charleston  he  published 
his  first  collection,  and  in  Savannah  was  brought  be¬ 
fore  the  grand  jury,  charged  with  introducing  unauthor¬ 
ized  hymns  into  church  worship. 

Neither  brother  was  successful  as  a  missionary,  per¬ 
haps  because  at  that  time  their  religion  was  of  a  rather 
severe  and  formal  type.  It  was  the  remarkable  spiritual 


JESUS,  LOVER  OF  MY  SOUL 


37 

experiences  they  passed  through  among  the  Moravians 
in  London,  after  their  return  from  America,  that  first 
gave  to  both  brothers  the  peace  and  joy  of  a  confident 
faith.  These  experiences  changed  their  lives  and  de¬ 
termined  their  future  careers.  Charles  started  out  as 
an  itinerant  preacher.  John  established  the  first  of 
those  meetings,  called  “  societies,”  that  were  the  germ 
of  the  Methodist  Church.  He  went  on  translating  and 
writing  hymns  until  organizing  and  preaching  absorbed 
all  his  energies. 

But  in  Charles’s  heart  the  new  happiness  seemed  to 
open  a  fountain  of  spiritual  song  that  never  ceased  to 
flow.  He  was  naturally  a  poet,  and  now  the  writing  of 
religious  verse  became  to  him  nothing  less  than  a  pas¬ 
sion.  In  recording  a  horseback  accident  on  one  of  his 
preaching  tours,  he  notes  that  his  sprains  and  bruises 
and  stunned  head  “  spoiled  my  making  hymns  until 
next  day.”  Every  experience  of  his  own,  every  scene 
and  occasion  of  the  Methodist  revival,  became  the  in¬ 
spiration  of  a  new  hymn.  He  wrote  his  first  within  a 
day  or  two  of  his  conversion.  He  dictated  his  last  to 
his  wife  from  his  deathbed,  “  in  age  and  feebleness  ex¬ 
treme.”  The  whole  number  is  little  if  at  all  short  of 
seven  thousand.  The  best  of  them  are  perhaps  as 
good  as  ever  were  written.  Most  of  them  have  some 
touch  of  hand  or  flash  of  thought  that  suggests  a  poet 
rather  than  a  manufacturer. 

The  unchurched  masses  among  whom  the  Wesleys 
worked  had  of  course  no  preference  in  favor  of  Psalms. 
They  quickly  caught  up  the  new  songs,  and  the  singing 
became  a  characteristic  feature  of  the  field  meetings. 
As  the  work  went  on,  the  hymns  served  as  an  outlet 
for  the  extravagant  enthusiasm  of  the  converts,  and  at 


38  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

the  same  time  kept  its  expression  within  limits  of  reality 
and  refinement.  They  were  printed  in  cheap  tracts  and 
booklets  for  distribution  among  the  people.  As  “  so¬ 
cieties  ”  were  formed,  new  hymns  were  provided  for 
the  class  meeting,  the  children,  and  the  occasions  of  wor¬ 
ship,  until  finally,  in  1780,  John  Wesley  gathered  up 
four  hundred  and  eighty-six  of  Charles’s  compositions, 
with  some  others,  into  a  permanent  Collection  of  Hymns 
for  the  use  of  the  people  called  Methodists. 

Charles  Wesley  was  a  different  type  of  man  from  his 
great  brother :  not  so  commanding  a  personality,  a  helper 
rather  than  a  leader,  a  poet  with  all  a  poet’s  moods, 
even  moods  of  deep  depression,  emotional  and  impetuous, 
But  probably  he  was  the  more  lovable  of  the  two  men, 
with  a  great  gift  of  winning  hearts.  The  future  of  the 
Methodist  Movement  lay  very  heavy  on  his  own  heart. 
He  saw  it  drifting  away  from  its  moorings  within  the 
established  Church.  He  loved  his  Church  with  all  his 
heart  and  felt  no  sympathy  whatever  with  his  brother’s 
arrangements  for  establishing  a  separate  denomination 
of  Methodists  in  England  and  America.  He  wished 
the  Methodist  societies  to  remain  as  a  part  of  the 
Church  of  England.  This  end  he  was  unable  to  accom¬ 
plish  against  his  brother’s  purpose,  but  as  still  a  clergy¬ 
man  of  that  Church,  he  died  on  March  29,  1788,  and 
was  buried  in  the  yard  of  his  parish  church,  Marylebone. 
“  His  least  praise,”  his  brother  said,  “  was  his  talent 
for  poetry.” 

THE  HYMN  AND  ITS  AUTHORSHIP 

There  are  several  differing  stories  of  the  romantic 
origin  of  “  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul.”  The  most  familiar 


JESUS,  LOVER  OF  MY  SOUL 


39 

represents  Charles  Wesley  seated  at  an  open  window 
during  a  storm,  or  sometimes  on  the  deck  of  a  vessel 
laboring  under  a  gale.  Then  a  dove  (or  sea  bird),  with 
its  strength  all  spent,  flies  to  his  bosom  to  find  a  refuge 
from  the  elements.  And  that  inspired  the  hymn.  All 
these  stories  cannot  be  true,  and  there  is  no  reason  to 
believe  that  there  is  a  word  of  truth  in  any  of  them.  It 
remains  a  mystery  that  worthy  people  should  care  to 
circulate  these  apocryphal  “  incidents  ”  of  which  the 
popular  books  are  so  full. 

We  do  not,  in  fact,  know  anything  of  the  occasion  of 
this  lyric,  except  that  it  is  entitled  “  In  Temptation,” 
and  sounds  like  a  real  cry  for  help  out  of  such  an  ex¬ 
perience.  And  there  is  no  absolute  assurance  that  Charles 
Wesley  wrote  it.  It  may  have  been  written  by  John. 
The  editors  of  the  English  Wesleyan  Methodist  Hymn 
Book  of  1875  went  so  far  as  to  affix  simply  the  letter 
W  to  this  hymn,  as  a  token  that  they  did  not  know 
to  which  of  the  brothers  it  should  be  ascribed. 

The  matter  stands  in  this  way.  The  brothers  printed 
jointly  three  volumes  of  their  earlier  verses  in  1739, 
1740,  and  1742,  with  pretty  much  the  same  title  — 
Hymns  and  Sacred  Poems.  Published  by  John  Wesley, 
M.A.,  and  Charles  Wesley,  M.A.  This  one  appeared  at 
page  67  of  the  1740  volume.  There  is  nothing  in  this  or 
the  other  volumes  to  show  which  brother  wrote  any 
particular  poem.  Evidently  the  Wesleys  wished  it  so. 
In  course  of  time  a  tradition  grew  up  that  only  the 
translations  were  John’s  and  all  the  original  verse  was 
Charles’s.  This,  we  now  know,  is  a  mistake,  and  John’s 
share  is  much  greater  than  was  supposed. 

What,  then,  is  to  be  said  of  “  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul  ”? 
Which  brother  wrote  it? 


40 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Anyone  familiar  with  the  Wesleyan  poems  will  say 
that  this  one  is  more  in  the  style  and  manner  of  those 
we  know  to  be  Charles’s  than  of  those  we  know  to  be 
John’s.  We  can  go  further.  John  showed  later  a  dis¬ 
like  of  anything  approaching  familiarity  in  intercourse 
with  God,  and  especially  of  the  use  of  terms  of  human 
endearment.  He  turned  bitterly  against  the  London 
Moravians  he  had  loved  so  well,  when  they  printed 
hymns  with  offensive  amatory  and  fleshly  images.  In 
a  sermon  of  1789  he  said  that  familiarity  does  not  so 
well  suit  ,the  mouth  of  a  worm  of  the  earth  when  ad¬ 
dressing  himself  to  the  God  of  heaven,  and  went  on, 
“  I  have  indeed  particularly  endeavored  in  all  the  hymns 
which  are  addressed  to  our  blessed  Lord,  to  avoid  every 
fondling  expression,  and  to  speak  as  to  the  most-high 
God ;  to  Him  that  is  ‘  in  glory  equal  with  the  Father, 
in  majesty  co-eternal.’  ” 

Now  if  John’s  feeling  about  such  matters  was  the 
same  in  1740  as  in  1789,  and  there  are  good  reasons  for 
thinking  it  was,  then  it  is  practically  certain  that  he 
would  not  have  written  the  lines, 

“  Jesu,  Lover  of  my  Soul, 

Let  me  to  Thy  Bosom  fly.” 

John,  as  the  elder  brother,  took  the  privilege  of  criti¬ 
cizing  his  brother’s  poems  very  freely.  There  were 
many  expressions  in  them  which  he  did  not  like,  and  he 
often  altered  them  before  printing.  That  he  did  not 
quite  approve  the  expressions  in  this  hymn  is  shown 
by  the  fact  that  in  selecting  Charles’s  contributions  to 
the  large  permanent  hymn  book  of  1780,  he  left  it  out 
altogether.  It  was  not  inserted  until  after  his  death. 
On  the  whole,  it  seems  that  we  may  ascribe  “  Jesus, 


wn?  rh 


XB03S&& 


THE  FIRST  PRINTING  OF  THE  HYMN 


\ 


42 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Lover  of  my  soul  ”  to  Charles  Wesley  with  a  fair  degree 
of  assurance.  The  only  absolute  proof  would  be  the 
finding  of  an  autograph  draft  of  it  in  the  masses  of 
Wesleyan  manuscripts  in  the  London  Conference  Office. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

i.  Many  people  have  claimed  John  Wesley’s  privilege 
of  criticizing  this  lyric,  notably  that  great  lover  of 
sacred  song,  the  late  William  E.  Gladstone.  A  friend  had 
expressed  in  his  hearing  a  warm  admiration  for  it,  and  he 
had  emphatically  dissented.  And  his  feelings  on  the 
subject  were  so  strong  that  he  was  moved  to  write  out 
his  objections,  even  though  immediately  about  to  un¬ 
dergo  an  operation  for  cataract. 

Criticisms  of  things  we  love  are  not  very  welcome. 
But  it  might  be  worth  while  to  examine  the  hymn 
anew  in  the  light  of  Gladstone’s  objections:  (i)  That 
it  has  no  unity.  A  number  of  ideas  are  jumbled  to¬ 
gether  rather  than  interwoven.  “  This  is  not  a  whole, 
for  the  parts  seem  to  have  no  relation  to  one  another.” 
The  theme  clearly  is  that  of  a  soul  under  stress  of  a 
great  temptation  calling  upon  Christ  for  help.  Is  that 
theme  carried  through  consistently  enough  to  give  unity? 
(2)  That  the  metaphors  are  constantly  changing  and 
crossing  each  other  in  such  a  way  as  to  cause  confusion. 
Thus  Christ  is  at  once  a  Refuge  from  a  storm  at  sea, 
a  Pilot  into  port,  an  overshadowing  Wing,  a  good 
Physician,  and  finally  a  Fountain  of  life.  What  is  to  be 
said  in  explanation  or  defense  on  this  point?  (3)  That 
“  it  has  no  procession.  Every  hymn  should  surely  have 
a  movement  calm,  solemn,,  and  continuous.  These  zig¬ 
zags  are  out  of  keeping  with  the  nature  of  the  com- 


JESUS,  LOVER  OF  MY  SOUL 


43 

position.  They  jar  the  mind  of  a  reader  and  set  him 
questioning  where  he  is  and  where  he  is  going.”  Is 
it  true  that  there  is  no  development  of  thought  in  the 
hymn?  Or  is  it  just  possible  that  there  is  really  a  con¬ 
tinuous  “  procession  ”  of  thought  in  which  for  some 
reason  Mr.  Gladstone’s  mind  has  failed  to  join  and  has 
remained  stationary? 

2.  Apart  from  criticism,  the  question  has  often  been 
raised  whether  a  lyric  so  tender  and  so  deeply  felt  should 
be  used  in  public  worship  or  reserved  for  private  devo¬ 
tion.  Mr.  Ellerton,  the  hymn  writer,  confesses  that  to 
him  “  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul  ”  lies  on  the  very  border 
line  between  the  two.  An  English  bishop  thinks  it  “  in¬ 
expressibly  shocking  ”  to  put  such  words  into  the 
mouth  of  a  large  and  mixed  gathering  of  people. 
Quaintly  enough,  actual  investigation  in  the  tramps’ 
ward  proved  this  to  be  one  of  three  hymns  most  popular 
with  English  tramps.  The  other  two  are  “  Lead,  kindly 
Light  ”  and  “  Abide  with  me.” 

3.  John  Wesley  was  surely  right  in  objecting  to  fa¬ 
miliarity  and  fondling  expressions  in  our  hymns.  Might 
it  not  be  well  if  some  of  our  modern  gospel  songs  were 
submitted  to  that  test?  It  is,  however,  a  question  how 
far  these  objections  apply  to  the  first  two  lines  of  this 
hymn.  Charles  Wesley  used  “  Lover  ”  in  the  divine 
and  not  our  human  sense,  taking  it  from  the  apocryphal 
book,  The  Wisdom  of  Solomon:  “  But  thou  sparest  all, 
because  they  are  Thine,  O  Lord,  Thou  Lover  of  souls.” 
The  imagery  of  the  second  line  is  that  of  St.  John  lying 
on  the  bosom  of  his  Lord.  It  is  true,  however,  that  we 
are  not  all  St.  Johns.  A  host  of  editors  have  proposed 
alterations  of  these  lines,  and  have  succeeded  in  com¬ 
pletely  spoiling  the  poetry  of  them. 


44 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


4.  The  editors  have  also  tried  their  hand  on  the  third 
line.  Some  of  us  remember  when  “  While  the  billows 
near  me  roll  ”  was  the  familiar  reading.  Is  there  any 
occasion  for  alteration?  Dr.  Julian  says:  “In  life, 
as  in  nature,  storms  are  local.  One  ship  may  be  dashed 
hither  and  thither  by  the  fury  of  the  nearer  waters, 
whilst  another  is  sleeping  in  the  far  distance  on  a  throb¬ 
less  sea.  Men  cry  for  help,  not  against  dangers  which 
are  both  distant  and  undefined,  but  out  of  the  depths 
of  their  immediate  troubles.” 

5.  The  Hymnal  revised  is  one  of  the  very  few  books 
that  print  the  whole  of  these  five  verses  just  as  “  W  ” 
wrote  them.  The  custom  is  to  omit  the  third  verse. 
But  then  the  third  verse  is  exceptionally  good.  And 
if  we  wish  a  four-verse  hymn,  is  it  not  worth  while  to 
consider  the  dropping  out  of  the  fourth  verse  and  the 
retaining  of  this? 


V 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  HEAVENLY  KING 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Children  of  the  heavenly  King, 

As  ye  journey,  sweetly  sing; 

Sing  your  Saviour’s  worthy  praise. 
Glorious  in  His  works  and  ways. 

2  We  are  traveling  home  to  God 
In  the  way  the  fathers  trod; 

They  are  happy  now,  and  we 
Soon  their  happiness  shall  see. 

3  Shout,  ye  little  flock  and  blest; 

You  on  Jesus’  throne  shall  rest; 

There  your  seat  is  now  prepared. 

There  your  kingdom  and  reward. 

4  Lift  your  eyes,  ye  sons  of  light, 

Zion’s  city  is  in  sight; 

There  our  endless  home  shall  be, 

There  our  Lord  we  soon  shall  see. 

5  Fear  not,  brethren;  joyful  stand 
On  the  borders  of  your  land; 

Jesus  Christ,  your  Father’s  Son, 

Bids  you  undismayed  go  on. 

6  Lord,  obediently  we  go, 

Gladly  leaving  all  below; 

Only  Thou  our  Leader  be, 

And  we  still  will  follow  Thee. 

Rev.  John  Cennick,  1742 


45 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


46 

Note:  The  text  here  given  is  abridged  (to  its  great  gain)  from 
the  twelve  verses  of  the  original  as  printed  by  Cennick,  in  the 
third  part  of  his  Sacred  Hymns  for  the  Children  of  God ,  in  the 
days  of  their  pilgrimage,  London,  1742.  The  verses  selected  are 
the  original  first,  second,  fifth,  sixth,  seventh,  and  eighth,  printed 
without  change,  except  of  spelling  and  punctuation. 

This  is  one  of  the  earlier  hymns  of  the  great  eighteenth 
century  revival,  written  by  an  eager  young  convert, 
John  Cennick.  He  became  a  Methodist  lay  preacher 
first  of  all,  but  soon  ranged  himself  with  Whitefield  as 
opposed  to  Wesley’s  theology.  In  the  end  he  found 
his  true  home  among  the  most  simple-hearted  of  all 
God’s  people,  the  Moravians. 


CENNICK’S  STRANGE  EXPERIENCE 

When  Cennick  printed  his  first  little  book  of  hymns 
he  prefixed  a  sort  of  confession  or  spiritual  auto¬ 
biography.  It  began,  “Perhaps  it  may  not  be  unuseful 
for  some  of  those ,  who  may  read  the  following  Verses, 
to  know  the  Manner  wherein  GOD  has  dealt  with  the 
Soul  of  him  who  wrote  them.”  That  is  still  good  advice 
to  us  if  we  wish  to  study  Cennick’s,  or  indeed  any  of 
the  hymns  of  the  great  Revival.  Those  eighteenth- 
century  hymns  are  different  from  most  later  hymns. 
They  are  the  outpourings  of  converts  who  have  passed 
through  such  stru0gles  in  finding  peace  that  ever  after¬ 
wards  spiritual  experiences  seemed  to  them  the  most 
real  thing  in  life,  and  the  inward  state  of  one’s  soul  the 
only  thing  that  mattered  much.  The  common  feature 
of  these  experiences,  but  the  feature  hardest  for  an  easy¬ 
going  twentieth  century  Christian  to  understand,  is  the 
dark  despairs  and  acute  agonies  they  had  to  endure 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  HEAVENLY  KING 


47 

under  the  grip  of  “  the  conviction  of  sin.”  Some  of 
them  were  reduced  to  a  disorder  of  mind  and  body  close 
to  the  borders  of  insanity ;  but  one  and  all  of  these  con¬ 
verts  credited  not  only  their  deliverance  but  their  suffer¬ 
ings  also  to  the  hand  of  God.  Cennick’s  case  was 
peculiar  only  in  the  degree  of  his  sufferings  and  in  his 
ability  to  express  the  joy  of  his  deliverance. 

He  was  born  in  the  English  town  of  Reading  on  Decem¬ 
ber  12,  1718,  being  eleven  years  younger  than  Charles 
Wesley.  His  family  was  respectable  but  somewhat  im¬ 
poverished.  His  mother  trained  him  carefully  in  the 
ways  of  Church  of  England  religion,  and  the  child  appears 
to  have  been  unusually  assiduous  in  attending  St. 
Laurence’s  Church.  What  he  and  many  like  him  seem 
to  have  gained  from  the  religious  training  of  the  time 
was  a  conscience  made  sensitive  by  the  fear  of  penalties, 
and  a  constant  dread  of  God  that  spoiled  one’s  pleasures 
but  was  not  allayed  by  observing  church  ordinances. 

When  Cennick  went  up  to  London  to  learn  a  trade  he 
fell,  no  doubt,  into  more  careless  ways  of  living;  until, 
while  walking  in  Cheapside  one  day  in  1735,  he  was 
suddenly  stricken  down  with  an  overwhelming  sense  of 
sin,  as  though  felled  by  God’s  hand.  He  sank  at  once 
into  an  abject  fear  and  hopeless  despondency,  from 
which  through  two  bitter  years  he  found  no  escape. 

Within  his  conscience  seared  like  a  hot  iron ;  without 
“  everything  seemed  strange  and  wild,”  and  there  was 
no  refuge  in  heaven  or  earth.  He  longed  to  hide  himself 
in  some  lonely  cave  and  to  sustain  life  on  acorns  and 
leaves;  hoping  indeed  that  he  might  not  sustain  it  and 
yet  afraid  of  the  death  he  craved.  He  tried  fasting, 
and  in  his  weakened  condition  began  to  see  apparitions 
and  to  hear  approaching  footfalls  of  the  Devil.  He 


48  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

shrank  from  the  faces  of  men,  and  thought  men  shrank 
from  him  and  that  friends  grew  cold. 

Finally — it  was  in  August,  1737  —  he  resolved  in  his 


despair  to  cast  himself  on  God’s  mercy  and  leave  the 
rest  with  Him.  Still  waiting  on  Him  in  dejection,  at 
home  one  day  in  September,  he  heard  “  the  Saint’s  Bell 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  HEAVENLY  KING 


49 

ring  at  St.  Laurence’s  Church  for  Prayers.”  He  felt 
constrained  to  attend.  “  Near  the  end  of  the  Psalms, 
when  these  Words  were  read:  Great  are  the  Troubles 
of  the  Righteous  but  the  LORD  delivereth  him  out  of 
them  all!  And  he  that  putteth  his  Trust  in  GOD  shall 
not  be  destitute:  I  had  just  Room  to  think,  Who  can 
be  more  destitute  than  me?  when  I  was  overwhelmed 
with  Joy,  I  believed  there  was  Mercy.  My  Heart 
danced  for  Joy,  and  my  dying  Soul  reviv’d!  I  heard 
the  Voice  of  JESUS  saying,  I  am  thy  Salvation.  I  no 
more  groaned  under  the  Weight  of  Sin.  The  Fear  of 
Hell  was  taken  away,  and  being  sensible  that  CHRIST 
loved  me,  and  died  for  me,  1  rejoiced  in  GOD,  my 
SAVIOUR.” 

So  sudden  a  change  brings  its  own  perplexities. 
Cennick  found  help  in  Whitefield’s  newly  printed 
Journal,  and  sought  the  counsel  of  both  him  and  John 
Wesley.  They  encouraged  him  and  found  a  position 
for  him  as  a  teacher  in  a  school  for  coal  miners’  children 
at  Kingswood.  There  he  at  once  began  to  preach  to 
the  miners  and  attained  what,  historically  speaking,  is 
his  special  distinction:  he  was  in  all  probability  the 
first  of  the  “  lay  preachers  ”  of  Methodism. 

“HYMNS  FOR  THE  CHILDREN  OF  GOD  ” 

George  Whitefield,  and  not  Wesley,  had  been  the 
original  field  preacher,  and  in  the  early  days  of  the 
revival  the  two  men  had  worked  hand  in  hand.  But 
in  1739,  after  Whitefield  had  gone  to  America  on  his 
revival  tour,  the  Wesleys  put  out  a  pamphlet  bitterly 
attacking  the  Calvinistic  doctrine  of  Predestination. 
“  My  dear  Brothers,”  Whitefield  wrote,  “  why  did  you 


f 


50  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

throw  out  the  bone  of  contention  ?  ”  It  was  a  bone  of 
contention  indeed.  Soon  afterward  John  Wesley  notes 
a  marked  change  in  Cennick’s  manner  toward  him. 

When  Whitefield  came  home  from  America  in  1741, 
the  rift  widened  into  a  permanent  breach  between  the 
Methodists  and  Calvinists,  with  Whitefield  as  the  leader 
of  the  Calvinists.  Cennick  broke  with  the  Wesleys, 
became  a  helper  in  Whitefield ’s  revival  work,  and  so 
continued  for  four  years. 

He  had  begun  to  write  hymns  while  a  Methodist, 
but  it  was  during  those  four  years  that  he  printed  all 
of  his  hymns  which  are  now  remembered.  In  emulation 
of  the  Wesleys  on  the  Methodist  side,  it  may  have  been ; 
but  whether  so  or  not,  he  was  for  those  years  as  indus¬ 
trious  a  maker  of  hymns  as  was  Charles  Wesley  himself, 
printing  very  nearly  five  hundred. 

Cennick  began  to  print  his  hymns  in  1741  as  Sacred 
Hymns  for  the  Children  of  God,  in  the  days  of  their 
pilgrimage.  So  rapid  was  his  production  that  a  second 
and  a  third  part  appeared  in  1742.  In  the  year  following 
he  published  in  two  parts  Sacred  Hymns  for  the  use  of 
Religious  Societies.  Generally  composed  in  DIA¬ 
LOGUES.  By  societies  he  meant  companies  of  people 
who  met  together,  apart  from  the  church  services,  to 
cultivate  the  religious  life.  By  “  dialogues  ”  he  meant 
what  we  call  singing  antiphonally  or  responsively.  He 
had  in  mind  the  Moravian  custom  of  arranging  the 
people  in  separate  choirs,  according  to  age  or  sex:  one 
choir  singing  the  first  line  or  lines  of  each  verse,  the 
other  responding  with  the  line  or  lines  following.  And 
in  his  little  book  he  made  this  practicable  by  printing 
some  lines  of  the  verses  in  roman  type,  and  some  in 
italics;  like  this: 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  HEAVENLY  KING 


51 


“  We  sing  to  Thee,  Thou  Son  of  GOD ! 

Who  Sav’d  us  by  thy  Grace: 

We  praise  Thee,  Son  of  Man!  whose  Blood 

Redeem’d  our  fallen  Race.” 

The  Moravians  already  had  formed  societies  in  Lon¬ 
don,  and  very  evidently  Cennick  was  being  attracted 
toward  them,  just  as  John  Wesley  was ;  but  in  Cennick’s 
case  it  was  the  call  of  the  blood  inherited  from  a  Mora¬ 
vian  ancestry  and  still  at  work  through  the  quaint 
compellings  of  heredity.  Cennick  did  not  resist  the 
call.  He  left  Whitefield  and  joined  the  Moravians.  His 
later  years  were  spent  partly  in  the  spread  of 
Moravianism  in  England  and  Ireland,  and  partly  in 
visiting  Germany.  He  came  back  to  London  in  great 
feebleness  in  June  of  1755,  and  on  the  fourth  of  July 
died  there. 

He  was  a  man  “  rather  below  the  middle  stature,” 
Rev.  Matthew  Wilks  says,  “  of  a  fair  countenance,  but 
of  a  fairer  mind.  A  good  understanding,  an  open  temper, 
and  a  tender  heart  characterized  the  man.”  He  was 
distinguished  by  “  unaffected  humility,  deadness  to  the 
■world,  a  life  of  communion  with  God,  and  a  cheerful 
reliance  on  a  crucified  Saviour.”  All  of  which  is  a  good 
hearing.  If  John  Wesley  dubbed  Cennick  “  that  weak 
man,”  we  can  understand  it.  A  follower  who  vacillates 
is  always  weak  to  a  great  and  single-hearted  leader. 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

Of  Cennick’s  familiar  hymns,  the  one  we  are  now 
studying  appeared  in  1742  in  the  third  part  of  the 
Sacred  Hymns  for  the  Children  of  God.  “  We  sing  to 
Thee,  Thou  Son  of  God  ”  appeared  a  year  later  in  Hymns 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


52 

for  the  use  of  Religious  Societies.  Whitefield  liked 
Cennick’s  hymns,  and  liked  his  idea  of  singing  in 
“  Dialogue.’’  It  was  because  Whitefield  put  these  two 
and  others  of  Cennick’s  hymns  into  the  hymn  book 
he  made  for  his  London  Tabernacle  in  1753  that  they 
became  so  widely  known  and  sung. 

Cennick  was  very  modest  about  his  hymns.  “  Of 
either  good  poetry,  or  fine  language  therein,  indeed  there 
is  none.  A  Child  wrote  them,  who  is  but  a  young  Stu¬ 
dent  in  CHRIST’S  school  ”  But  they  were  intended  to 
be  songs  and  not  tracts  in  verse.  Cennick  was  a  great 
believer  in  “  the  ministry  of  song.” 

It  would  not  be  possible  to  connect  our  present  hymn, 
or  any  other  of  Cennick’s  hymns,  with  any  particular 
outward  event  or  special  experience  of  his  life.  Never¬ 
theless  we  cannot  catch  the  spiritual  beauty  of  this 
hymn  of  courage  and  good  cheer  until  we  connect  it  with 
the  life  Cennick  was  leading.  Truly  these  itinerant 
preachers  of  Wesley  and  Whitefield  had  a  hard  time  of  it 
—  in  journeyings  often,  in  weariness  and  painfulness,  in 
hunger  and  thirst,  and,  most  of  all,  in  perils  from  their 
own  countrymen.  Their  own  countrymen,  even  the  best 
of  them,  thought  them  disturbers  of  the  settled  order, 
and  the  ruder,  illiterate  element  of  the  people  seems 
to  have  hated  them  and  their  gospel  instinctively. 
Wherever  these  preachers  went,  they  were  met  and  sur¬ 
rounded  by  a  rough  and  often  brutal  hostility,  some¬ 
times  egged  on  by  the  local  authorities,  including  even 
the  clergy. 

In  June,  1741,  Cennick  went  with  some  friends  to 
preach  at  Swindon.  But  before  he  could  begin,  he 
writes,  the  mob  “  fired  guns  over  our  heads,  holding 
the  muzzles  so  near  our  faces,  that  Howell  Harris  and 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  HEAVENLY  KING 


53 

myself  were  both  made  as  black  as  tinkers  with  the 
powder.  We  were  not  affrighted,  but  opened  our 
breasts,  telling  them  we  were  ready  to  lay  down  our 
lives  for  our  doctrine.  Then  they  got  dust  out  of  the 
highway,  and  covered  us  all  over;  and  then  played  an 
engine  upon  us,  which  they  filled  out  of  the  stinking 
ditches.  While  they  played  upon  brother  Harris,  I 
preached ;  and,  when  they  turned  the  engine  upon  me, 
he  preached.  This  continued  till  they  spoiled  the 
engine ;  and  then  they  threw  whole  buckets  of  water 
and  mud  over  us.  Mr.  Goddard,  a  leading  gentleman 
of  the  town,  lent  the  mob  his  guns,  halberd,  and  engine, 
and  bade  them  use  us  as  badly  as  they  could,  only  not 
to  kill  us ;  and  he  himself  sat  on  horseback  the  whole 
time,  laughing  to  see  us  thus  treated.” 

It  is  such  experiences  as  these,  of  the  very  time  when 
our  hymn  was  written,  that  make  its  actual  setting. 
And  out  of  them  it  shines  in  all  of  its  spiritual  beauty  — 
the  pluck  of  an  unconquerable  purpose,  the  serenity  of 
an  untroubled  faith,  the  good  cheer  of  an  incorruptible 
hope. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

i.  The  literary  critics  are  not  always  very  kind  to 
our  hymns.  But  we  must  not  hit  back  and  say  that 
the  critics  themselves  are  not  so  spiritual-minded  as 
they  ought  to  be.  Sometimes  they  may  be  right.  As 
Mr.  Toplady  said,  in  the  preface  to  his  hymn  book  in 
1776:  “God  is  the  God  of  Truth,  of  Holiness,  and  of 
Elegance.  Whoever,  therefore,  has  the  honor  to  com¬ 
pose,  or  to  compile,  anything  that  may  constitute  a  part 
of  His  worship,  should  keep  those  three  particulars,  con¬ 
stantly,  in  view.”  It  may  be  that  some  of  our  hymns 
are  not  worthy  of  the  God  of  Elegance. 


54 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


It  is,  then,  comforting  to  know  that  Mr.  Palgrave, 
Professor  of  Poetry  at  Oxford,  and  editor  of  The  Golden 
Treasury  —  still  generally  regarded  as  the  standard  of 
our  lyrical  poetry  —  did  not  hesitate  to  include  these 
six  verses  of  Cennick’s  in  his  later  Treasury  of  Sacred 
Song.  These  six,  it  may  be  added,  are  only  the  half 
of  the  original  hymn.  But  they  are  the  better  half. 

2.  These  studies  are  not  intended  to  be  “  preachy.” 
(The  writer  once  read  a  sermon  on  this  hymn  preached 
by  Canon  Duncan  at  St.  Stephen’s,  Newcastle-upon- 
Tyne;  and  he  still  likes  the  hymn.)  But  with  his 
readers’  consent  he  would  venture  to  say  that  in  his 
opinion  the  injunction  in  the  second  line  of  this  hymn 
is  as  good  advice  as  we  are  likely  to  get  in  this  world. 
The  road  to  heaven  is  not  so  hard  for  most  of  us  as 
Cennick  found  it ;  but  it  is  never  easy  going.  And  he  who 
can  meet  the  hard  places  with  a  song  is  the  best  traveler. 

And  that  is  the  great  argument  in  favor  of  committing 
hymns  to  memory.  You  cannot  always  carry  The 
Hymnal  in  your  grip  “  as  ye  journey.” 

3.  May  not  Cennick’s  hymn  be  ranged  with  Watts’s 
“  There  is  a  land  of  pure  delight,”  as  one  of  the  un¬ 
doubtedly  wholesome  hymns  dealing  with  the  hope  of 
heaven?  It  is,  at  all  events,  one  of  the  few  hymns  on 
that  subject  which  young  people  generally  have  liked  to 
sing.  Of  course  the  buoyant  melody,  arranged  from  a 
movement  in  an  instrumental  quartet  by  Ignaz  Joseph 
Pleyel,  helps  to  keep  the  hymn  alive.  Pleyel  was  an 
Austrian,  and  it  is  odd  that  the  tune  was  for  a  century 
called  “German  Hymn  ”  by  most  people. 

Cennick’s  hymn  may  also  be  compared  with  Williams’ 
“  Guide  me,  O  Thou  Great  Jehovah,”  as  being  a  dif¬ 
ferent  treatment  of  the  journey  of  the  Children  of  Israel 


CHILDREN  OF  THE  HEAVENLY  KING 


55 

to  the  promised  country.  Williams’  hymn  is  a  prayer 
for  help  from  the  dangers  and  difficulties  of  the  road. 
Cennick  pictures  a  sunny-hearted  pilgrim,  who  thinks 
nothing  of  the  perils  of  the  road  in  view  of  the  glory 
beyond  that  shines  on  them.  But  Watts,  to  get  back  to 
“  There  is  a  land  of  pure  delight,”  leaves  the  Children 
of  Israel  appraising  the  width  of  Jordan  from  its  bank 
where  they  are  gathered,  while  he  climbs  the  hill  with 
Moses  to  “  view  the  landscape  o’er.” 


VI 


CHRISTIANS,  AWAKE!  SALUTE  THE 

HAPPY  MORN 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Christians,  awake !  salute  the  happy  morn, 
Whereon  the  Saviour  of  the  world  was  born; 
Rise  to  adore  the  mystery  of  love, 

Which  hosts  of  angels  chanted  from  above; 

With  them  the  joyful  tidings  first  begun 
Of  God  Incarnate  and  the  Virgin’s  Son. 

2  Then  to  the  watchful  shepherds  it  was  told, 
Who  heard  the  angelic  herald’s  voice:  “  Behold, 

I  bring  good  tidings  of  a  Saviour’s  birth 

To  you  and  all  the  nations  upon  earth: 

This  day  hath  God  fulfilled  His  promised  word; 
This  day  is  born  a  Saviour,  Christ  the  Lord.” 

3  He  spake:  and  straightway  the  celestial  choir 
In  hymns  of  joy,  unknown  before,  conspire; 
The  praises  of  redeeming  love  they  sang, 

And  heaven’s  whole  orb  with  alleluias  rang: 
God’s  highest  glory  was  their  anthem  still, 
Peace  upon  earth,  and  mutual  good  will. 

4  O  may  we  keep  and  ponder  in  our  mind 
God’s  wondrous  love  in  saving  lost  mankind; 
Trace  we  the  Babe,  who  has  retrieved  our  loss, 
From  His  poor  manger  to  His  bitter  cross; 
Treading  His  steps,  assisted  by  His  grace, 

Till  man’s  first  heavenly  state  again  takes  place. 

56 


CHRISTIANS,  AWAKE!  SALUTE  THE  HAPPY  MORN  57 


5  Then  may  we  hope,  the  angelic  thrones  among, 

To  sing,  redeemed,  a  glad  triumphal  song; 

He  that  was  born  upon  this  joyful  day 
Around  us  all  His  glory  shall  display; 

Saved  by  His  love,  incessant  we  shall  sing 
Eternal  praise  to  heaven’s  Almighty  King. 

Arranged  from  a  Christmas  poem  of  John  Byrom,  1750;  verse  4, 
line  1;  verse  5,  line  6,  altered 

Two  of  our  familiar  Christmas  hymns  are  associated 
with  the  Methodist  side  of  the  eighteenth  century  re¬ 
vival  and  with  the  Wesleys  themselves.  One  of  the 
friends  whose  help  they  asked  in  preparing  their  first 
hymn  book  after  they  had  returned  from  Georgia  was 
Dr.  John  Byrom ;  and  he  is  the  author  of  “  Christians, 
awake !  ”  The  other  Christmas  hymn,  “  Hark !  the  herald 
angels  sing,”  was  printed  by  the  Wesleys  themselves, 
in  1739,  in  the  earliest  of  the  three  collections  they  named 
Hymns  and  Sacred  Poems . 

JOHN  BYROM  AND  HIS  POEMS 

There  is  no  need  of  a  lingering  look  at  Dr.  Byrom’s 
portrait  to  assure  us  that  he  was  what  is  called  a  charac¬ 
ter.  From  under  the  low  slouched  hat  with  its  rim  pro¬ 
jecting  like  the  prow  of  a  racing  yacht,  the  bewigged 
head  bends  forward  in  an  inquisitive  intentness;  and 
the  face  is  as  striking  as  the  hat,  with  a  ruminating 
look  in  the  eye  and  a  very  whimsical  but  not  unkindly 
mouth.  One  notes  the  crook-handled  cane  and  wonders 
what  the  color  of  the  long  coat  may  have  been.  It 
must  have  been  a  very  long  coat,  for  Byrom  was  con¬ 
spicuously  tall.  He  speaks  in  his  diary  of  taking  walks 
with  John  Wesley.  Now  Wesley  was  rather  short  and 


58  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

slight,  dressed  in  conventional  clerical  clothes,  and  a 
model  of  neatness,  so  that  the  couple  walking  side  by 
side  must  have  presented  something  of  a  spectacle. 

Underneath  these  oddities  Byrom  was  very  much  a 
gentleman  and  something  of  a  scholar,  a  devoted  hus¬ 
band  and  affectionate  father,  a  loyal  friend  in  fair 
weather  and  foul ;  and  in  spite  of  a  gift  of  bubbling 
humor,  he  walked  the  earth  in  a  sort  of  reverential 
awe  that  made  life  very  sacred  and  God  very  near. 

He  was  the  son  of  a  linen  merchant  of  Manchester, 
England,  near  which  city  he  was  born  in  February, 
1692  ;  and  was  thus  eighteen  years  younger  than  Isaac 
Watts  and  eleven  years  older  than  John  Wesley.  The 
biographical  dictionaries  sum  him  up  as  “  poet  and 
stenographer,”  and  he  was  already  both  of  these  while 
still  at  college  in  Cambridge.  While  there  he  invented 
a  new  system  of  shorthand,  and  also  printed  in  The 
Spectator  for  October  6,  1714,  a  playful  pastoral  poem 
called  “  Colin  and  Phoebe,”  which  attracted  more  atten¬ 
tion  and  admiration  than  anything  he  wrote  afterwards. 
When  through  college  he  went  to  the  continent  to  study 
medicine,  and  though  he  never  won  his  diploma  he  was 
called  “  Doctor  ”  for  the  rest  of  his  life. 

Byrom  returned  to  England  in  *7*18  *amd  married  a 
cousin.  His  elder  brother  had  inherited  the  family 
property,  and  he  started  to  earn  a  living  by  teaching 
his  shorthand.  His  pupils  paid  him  five  guineas  and 
swore  an  oath  to  keep  the  secret  of  his  system.  They 
liked  him  and  no  doubt  had  their  fun  out  of  him,  calling 
him  “  the  Grand  Master  ” ;  and  among  them  were  some 
very  distinguished  men. 

Between  Byrom  and  the  Wesleys  were  two  bonds  — 
a  common  love  of  shorthand  and  of  religion.  Charles 


?  f-t/V/*  tf  ft 


7 


w/a 


// 


4-v 


■7/  .'///  / 


DR.  JOHN  BYROM 


60  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

Wesley  adopted  Byrom’s  system  at  a  very  early  date, 
and  soon  persuaded  John  to  adopt  it.  Many  of  their 
hymns,  the  diary  of  Charles,  and  the  vast  and  invaluable 
“  Journal  ”  of  John  Wesley,  were  all  written  in  Byrom’s 
shorthand. 

There  was  not  only  a  warm  friendship  between  the 
men,  but  a  religious  sympathy  deeper  than  the  differ¬ 
ences  of  their  temperaments  and  theological  views. 
Byrom  was  known  at  Manchester  as  a  High  Churchman 
and  a  Jacobite  —  an  adherent  of  the  Pretender  as 
against  the  king.  But  he  did  not  allow  his  church- 
manship  to  interfere  with  his  wide  religious  sympathies. 
It  is  indeed  probable  that  his  deep  spirituality  alien¬ 
ated  him  from  the  average  clergy  of  that  day  and  pre¬ 
vented  him  from  becoming  a  clergyman  himself.  He 
was  at  heart  a  mystic,  caring  more  about  real  personal 
relations  with  God  than  about  systems  of  theology  or 
church  organizations.  He  never  became  a  Methodist, 
and  probably  never  had  the  peculiar  type  of  religious 
experience  that  the  great  revival  produced.  But  he  was 
sympathetic  with  the  religious  work  of  the  Wesleys,  at¬ 
tended  their  services  frequently,  and  was  their  warm 
friend  in  days  when  so  many  despised  and  ridiculed 
them. 

The  Wesleys  consulted  him  about  their  first  collection 
of  hymns  of  1738  and  asked  him  to  contribute  some. 
He  responded  with  excellent  advice  and  with  transla¬ 
tions  of  two  French  mystical  hymns.  One  of  these 
seems  to  have  been  the  “Come,  Saviour  Jesus!  from 
above,”  that  became  a  well-known  Methodist  hymn  and 
is  in  use  up  to  the  present  day.  It  may  be  that  John 
Wesley’s  hand  touched  it  up  here  and  there,  as  was 
his  way.  It  is  not  likely  that  Byrom  helped  the  Wesleys 


CHRISTIANS,  AWAKE !  SALUTE  THE  HAPPY  MORN  6l 

in  actual  religious  activities.  Meditation  and  study  and 
debate  were  more  to  his  taste  than  activity.  He  liked 
to  do  his  own  thinking  and  to  cultivate  lettered  ease; 
to  let  the  world  wag  while  he  contemplated  it  with  what 
he  calls  in  one  of  his  poems  “calm  content.” 

In  1740  Byrom’s  brother  died  and  he  inherited  the 
family  property.  Henceforward  shorthand  was  rather 
a  hobby  than  a  means  of  livelihood,  and  he  had  all  the 
more  time  for  writing  poetry.  He  had  always  had  a 
gift  for  meter  and  for  rhyming,  and  it  got  so  that  he 
seemed  to  think  in  verse,  as  Mr.  Henley  puts  it.  Every 
subject  he  wanted  to  argue  about  or  poke  fun  at  seemed 
to  him  a  suitable  subject  for  poetry.  Descriptions,  nar¬ 
ratives,  criticisms,  speeches,  essays,  theological  dis¬ 
quisitions  as  well  as  hymns  —  they  were  all  in  verse. 
It  is  fair,  however,  to  remember  that  he  wrote  for  the 
amusement  of  himself  and  friends  and  seldom  printed 
his  verses.  They  were  not  collected  and  published  until 
after  his  death.  His  versifying,  as  he  grew  older,  be¬ 
came  more  and  more  religious  in  its  character,  and  it 
came  to  an  end  only  with  a  long  illness.  He  died  on 
September  26,  1763,  and  his  poems  were  published  in 
two  volumes  at  Manchester  in  1773. 

On  July  12  of  that  year  John  Wesley  read  them  on  a 
journey  from  Liverpool  to  Birmingham,  and  was  de¬ 
lighted  with  them.  He  said  they  showed  all  the  wit  of 
Dean  Swift,  with  more  learning  and  piety,  and  expressed 
some  of  the  finest  sentiments  that  ever  appeared  in 
English  arrayed  in  the  strongest  colors  of  poetry.  The 
present  writer  owns  a  copy  of  the  same  edition  of  the 
poems  that  Mr.  Wesley  read,  but  has  not  found  there  all 
that  he  did.  The  wit  and  learning  and  piety  are  all 
there,  and  the  charm  of  a  quaint  personality,  but  the 


62 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  colors  of  poetry  ”  have  faded  out  somewhat.  Byrom’s 
verse  will  have  few  readers  nowadays,  but  he  will  be 
remembered  by  one  of  the  wittiest  of  epigrams: 

“  God  bless  the  King,  I  mean  the  Faith’s  Defender; 

God  bless  —  no  Harm  in  blessing  —  the  Pretender; 

But  who  Pretender  is,  or  who  is  King, 

God  bless  us  all  —  that’s  quite  another  Thing.” 

He  will  be  remembered  also  by  this  Christmas  carol 
that  may  very  likely  be  sung  as  long  as  the  celebration 
of  that  day  survives  among  English-speaking  people. 


“  CHRISTMAS  DAY  FOR  DOLLY  ” 

On  the  walls  of  the  librarian’s  room  of  the  Chetham 
Library  at  Manchester  hangs  the  neatly  framed  original 
manuscript  of  Byrom’s  Christmas  poem,  on  a  very 
crowded  sheet  of  note  paper.  It  bears  the  title  “  Christ¬ 
mas  Day  for  Dolly.”  And  from  this  poem,  by  omitting 
some  of  the  lines  and  arranging  the  remainder  into 
verses  which  can  be  sung,  our  Christmas  hymn,  “  Chris¬ 
tians,  awake!  ”  has  been  made. 

Francis  Arthur  Jones,  in  his  Famous  Hymns  and 
their  Authors,  tells  an  attractive  little  story  about  the 
poem.  “  It  was  written  in  1745,  and  the  story  of  its 
composition  is  a  pretty  tale.  John  Byrom,  the  author, 
had  several  children,  but,  like  many  another  father, 
he  had  his  favorite.  This  child  was  a  little  girl  named 
Dolly,  who  afterwards  became  Mrs.  *  Dorothy  Byrom. 
A  few  days  prior  to  Christmas,  1745,  Mr.  Byrom,  after 
having  had  a  romp  with  the  favored  Dolly,  promised 
to  write  her  something  for  Christmas  Day.  It  was  to 

*  Used,  at  that  period,  as  a  courtesy  title. 


Mjsx,  At 

fit  fo  cuftrre  f&c  My/ftsy^ftf  <Md~ve 

H/ucA  #*brfO^dtt/0m<£i 

Mifsl  t^LL/Ti  Jidjjl?}  j~i7Y A  fdf  iCfl 

f  9°^  fncaJn&ft >  t&/t/cr*itoW*n~ 

1 '  ft-  /o  tfce  UtodtAjuM  J/UeferM/if  On/  Joi^ 

«*  0  'v.  jU  >  „  71 

7 

¥ticLn4f  of  M&  do. 


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/f2crm  t  9^7  J*u>  fiCir  Azineu#'  a/  Kc  ilnfcf  JalM 
C  /j^l.  t  ^  /*M>*VQ.,A MiaJ  in  Mn-lft Inf  C>  hi) 

"*  '  ^  S&tftf  y  /ftory  X-  dl/ftrefj <v  /fair  ,  J 

%<aOiji  L%,'  JtrGi  C  IjccAr-f  ft  [aim  if e* 


*AzaJu)  tfc  * flnftfUt  Jtefabj  (/oica-feAaQ 

VfcJTi 


'Orvxgoxj  flit  fa 

•  To  eaMLStMc  <£t£L  &e  flaAftUj  eep^ftfx. 


pA^ftMaik.  foorb 

cLom  t/  ff<rm  4  y  fM‘  ^ 

9ne2)a&-d.  uiy  *4*"  sMc/M 

fak*  hny  hrrfrnb  /efteAnjirofi 
PyMVjr  to  SvZ&na 
{0  CfttiAA  COn/cUftf  roc  Arty- Sdde  eLutAe-- 


He  JpaAtt  p-  jhcuqijxoay  l%e Ceffj'Aal %e/A& 

jn  ftu/nnj  cfjfcf  ttoftmcoL  kjm?  tito/fii* 
%u  tyrcujcj  err  r<eki^nfVeby-Ju  * ~ 

Cti)  (ftcump  Mfi(* C*f  Ar >,. .a 
H-CiK<-tr  yCo-ry  A >aj  TauW  jukfiu+ri  <1 
^praM.  o/'en?  IxcMffc  *  €hm>p  'Idtxt, 


f-i 


hhv'ix -n:  'L>ftJ  tumt.  vAtSe/il  jw,f  f Ac  y  dvo 

/  ft  ft  *  ,  ■  /  •  ,  7~\  1 ’. 

woifU'  srtxxrh  ajslj  potn-arif  Mtcnecdftrttl’tc* 

/>  ,  O  /J  -  ■  ftt  //. .  s 

UstnMJzj  .  a/,  i*Tc-?urrcHA/  J hr>y  u r*y.  ti?/zx cmJm 

-  ^ ‘  Cirrp dtf ;tf ({lbii;tfU ubiiJy-ftiMift  v4mv 

fJlc  ftfyl-  ClpiAvtu  sr^  -ytf  tk  ftini  ja/nc 

/J  ^  f  Ma,r-f  A&pT  if’  fr&nj&rx}  tft  Aarj/ea.)/- 

ytx  PypJn  a?  *6 'Mi.  tAjiUH/ e/nfat/- 

(Ml  ft'  P-CX-rff  hM cHi/P A n'McA  Mm  » 

At PiJ  ufic  M/JL.  ftroxr PcfiPrft  ffr-n  efAfi'ey. 

Jur  nMcfu.il  l*rtce/  to  pwcuum’ Me-  ftp 
Ml  fix-  Ml  a  n/  fe  Mu/  pcfher//}  ourt/U/M 
'od/  hnndr/uj  Mnk  in  Jaui/iy  (ivlpwdoM 
dTlt  '  -  '  "  *  '■  Hi"  '  "  ‘ 

fr) 


“  / 

l>*Ufh 


Jc  ml  fl  Mr y 


**■  prate  n*  tic*  dJ> x «V  AJAJ d±) rf/net/o out f}. 
pnrhi  4(>  poor  Manner 
rc/pfv  M  Aim  /?>&  A-*/  UU >  lxu/e  tf/imM/,, 
<hu4  fft.fr  '  ft  rtf  /ux;*/J*f  /ul'MmftAl 


■0 


THE  POEM  AS  BYROM  WROTE  IT 


64  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

be  written  specially  for  herself,  and  no  one  else.  The 
child,  highly  honored  and  delighted,  did  not  fail  to  re¬ 
mind  her  father  of  his  promise  each  day  as  Christmas 
drew  nearer.  On  the  morning  of  the  great  day,  when 
she  ran  down  to  breakfast,  she  found  several  presents 
waiting  for  her.  Among  these  was  an  envelope  addressed 
to  her  in  her  father’s  handwriting.  It  was  the  first  thing 
she  opened,  and  to  her  great  delight,  proved  to  be  a 
Christmas  carol  addressed  to  her,  and  to  her  alone.” 
Mr.  Jones  goes  on  to  add  that  the  present  creased  and 
crumpled  state  of  the  original  manuscript  comes  “  prob¬ 
ably  from  being  carried  about  in  Miss  Dolly’s  pocket.” 

It  makes  a  pretty  story  and  one  would  like  to  believe 
it.  But  how  can  we?  The  title  of  the  manuscript  does 
show  that  Byrom  gave  it  to  his  daughter.  But  that 
he  wrote  it  for  her  especially  is  less  evident,  because  the 
words  “  for  Dolly  ”  are  added  in  pencil,  as  though  they 
were  an  afterthought.  And  there  is  no  evidence  what¬ 
ever  that  Byrom  wrote  the  poem  during  Dolly’s  child¬ 
hood.  She  was  born  on  April  26,  1730,  and  the  earliest 
date  we  have  for  the  hymn  is  Christmas,  1750,  at  which 
time  Dolly  was  quite  a  grown-up  young  lady.  In  near¬ 
by  Manchester  there  was  a  young  man,  John  Wain- 
wright,  who  had  some  part  in  the  music  of  the  old 
Church  of  St.  Mary  the  Virgin,  now  the  Cathedral.  He, 
too,  had  a  copy  of  Byrom’s  poem  and  saw  its  possibilities 
as  a  Christmas  carol.  He  divided  it  into  verses  and 
composed  for  it  the  delightful  tune  to  which  it  is  still 
sung.  And  on  “  Xmas,  1750,  the  singing  men  and  boys, 
with  Mr.  Wainwright  ”  (in  other  words,  the  choir  of  St. 
Mary’s)  paid  Dr.  Byrom  —  or  was  it  Dolly?  —  the 
compliment  of  coming  out  to  his  home  and  singing 
“Christians,  awake!  ”  beneath  his  windows.  This  in 


CHRISTIANS,  AWAKE!  SALUTE  THE  HAPPY  MORN  65 

its  way  is  as  pleasing  an  incident  as  Mr.  Jones’s  little 
story,  and  it  has  the  quite  inestimable  advantage  of 
being  true. 

The  Wesleys  did  not  put  their  friend’s  Christmas 

hymn  into  any  of  their  hymn  books,  and  it  was  probably 

unknown  to  Toplady  and  the  others  who  soon  began  to 

make  Church  of  England  hymn  books.  But  in  those 

days  of  carol  singing  Wainwright’s  tune  attracted  atten- 

• 

tion.  “  It  is  instinct  with  the  healthy  frost  and  good 
cheer  of  the  old-fashioned  English  Christmas  ” ;  and  it 
was  as  a  Christmas  carol  rather  than  a  church  hymn 
that  the  words  and  tune  so  happily  mated  began  their 
career,  and  became  popular  in  northern  England.  The 
Rev.  Caleb  Ashworth,  a  Lancashire  man,  heard  and 
liked  the  tune,  and  put  it  into  his  tune  book  printed 
in  1760,  but  he  divorced  it  from  Byrom’s  words  and 
made  it  a  setting  for  Dr.  Watts’s  version  of  the  Fiftieth 
Psalm : 

“  The  God  of  Glory  sends  his  Summons  forth, 

Calls  the  South  Nations,  and  awakes  the  North.” 


Ashworth’s  book  had  only  a  local  circulation.  But  in 
1784  the  Rev.  Ralph  Harrison,  another  Lancashire  man, 
included  the  tune  in  his  tune  book.  His  book  became 
very  popular  and  made  the  tune  widely  known.  Har¬ 
rison’s  book  found  its  way  into  this  country,  and  in 
various  American  editions  of  “  Watts’s  Psalms  ”  in  the 
first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  Fiftieth  Psalm 
is  marked  to  be  sung  to  “  Walworth  ” ;  and  on  turning 
to  the  tune  books  we  find  that  Walworth  was  simply 
Wainwright’s  tune  under  another  name.  It  is  unlikely 
that  it  was  much  sung.  Congregations  of  the  time  were 
not  musical  and  would  shrink  from  six  lines  of  ten 


66 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


syllables.  Perhaps  sometimes  the  choirs  attempted  to 
render  it  for  them. 

Over  in  England  Byrom’s  hymn  had  never  been  lost 
sight  of.  Every  Christmas  it  was  sung  to  Wainwright’s 
tune,  but  as  an  out-of-doors  carol  rather  than  in  church. 
It  was  the  poet  Montgomery  who  made  a  church  hymn 
out  of  it.  He  arranged  it  for  the  hymn  book  he  com¬ 
piled  for  his  friend,  the  Rev.  Thomas  Cotterill,  in  1819; 
and  from  that  book  it  has  passed  into  most  of  the  im¬ 
portant  church  hymnals  both  in  England  and  America. 
The  Presbyterians  in  Scotland  and  the  Methodists  in 
America  are  exceptional,  in  that  they  have  not  yet 
learned  the  pleasure  of  saluting  the  happy  morn  with 
“  Christians,  awake !  ” 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  What  is  the  difference  between  a  Christmas  hymn 
and  a  Christmas  carol?  A  hymnologist  would  say  that 
“  Hark !  the  herald  angels  sing  ”  was  a  hymn,  and 
that  “  Christians,  awake !  ”  and  “  O  little  town  of  Beth¬ 
lehem  ”  were  carols.  Is  it  because  a  carol  treats  the  sub¬ 
ject  with  a  child’s  simplemindedness  and  from  a  child’s 
point  of  view?  Or  does  the  distinction  refer  only  to  the 
character  of  the  music  used? 

2.  The  reader  has  before  him  the  full  text  of  Byrom’s 
poem  as  first  written,  except  the  last  six  lines,  which  he 
can  supply  from  The  Hymnal  revised.  He  is  in  the 
same  position  as  the  editor  of  a  hymn  book  who  wants 
to  use  the  poem,  but  is  confronted  with  the  problem 
of  arranging  it  so  that  it  can  be  sung.  Probably  no 
editor  ever  solved  that  problem  to  his  complete  satis¬ 
faction,  and  the  reader  can  if  he  pleases  apply  his  own 


CHRISTIANS,  AW  ARE  l  SALUTE  THE  HAPPY  MORN  67 

wits  to  it  and  try  for  a  better  arrangement.  The  con¬ 
ditions  are: 

(1)  Some  lines  must  be  omitted.  The  poem  is  too 
long  for  a  hymn. 

(2)  There  should  be  the  fewest  possible  alterations. 

(3)  The  verses  must  be  of  six  lines  to  fit  Wain- 
wright’s  tune.  Nobody  wants  to  sing  it  to  anything 
else. 

(4)  Montgomery  made  six  verses,  which  are  too 
many.  An  arrangement  in  four  that  kept  the  train  of 
thought  unbroken  would  be  ideal. 

3.  There  are  two  types  of  hymn  tunes.  There  are 
choir  tunes,  of  delicate  beauty,  that  one  likes  to  listen 
to  rather  than  to  sing.  And  there  are  people’s  tunes 
that  make  one  feel  like  joining  in  to  swell  the  volume 
of  sound.  “  Stockport  ”  is  just  such  a  tune.  It  repre¬ 
sents  a  period  when  people  were  getting  tired  of  the  old 
Psalm  tunes  sung  in  church,  and  church  musicians 
were  seeking  a  somewhat  lighter  and  more  cheerful 
type  of  tune.  When  one  catches  the  spirit  of  its  bluff 
heartiness  and  the  swing  of  its  melody  it  is  still  quite 
irresistible.  If  not  sung  in  our  churches  as  often  as  one 
might  wish,  that  may  be  because  it  makes  no  special 
appeal  to  the  choir,  or  because  our  congregations  have 
not  become  familiar  with  it. 


VII 

GUIDE  ME,  O  THOU  GREAT  JEHOVAH 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Guide  me,  O  Thou  Great  Jehovah, 

Pilgrim  through  this  barren  land; 

I  am  weak,  but  Thou  art  mighty, 

Hold  me  with  Thy  powerful  hand: 

Bread  of  heaven, 

Feed  me  till  I  want  no  more. 

2  Open  now  the  crystal  fountain, 

Whence  the  healing  stream  doth  flow; 

Let  the  fire  and  cloudy  pillar 

Lead  me  all  my  journey  through: 

Strong  Deliverer, 

Be  Thou  still  my  Strength  and  Shield. 

3  When  I  tread  the  verge  of  Jordan, 

Bid  my  anxious  fears  subside; 

Death  of  deaths  and  hell’s  Destruction, 

Land  me  safe  on  Canaan’s  side: 

Songs  of  praises 
I  will  ever  give  to  Thee. 

Written  in  Welsh  by  the  Rev.  William  Williams,  1745. 
In  making  an  English  version,  about  1772,  he  used  a 
translation  of  the  first  verse  already  (1771)  made  by  the 
Rev.  Peter  Williams,  and  himself  translated  the  second 
and  third  verses. 

Note:  The  text  of  the  three  verses  as  here  given  is  that  of  the 
leaflet  of  1772  prepared  for  Lady  Huntingdon’s  College  at  Trevecca, 
without  change  except  the  capitalizing  of  “  Destruction  ”  in  verse 
three.  A  fourth  verse  given  there  is  omitted  but  is  quoted  in  the 
course  of  this  chapter. 


68 


GUIDE  ME,  O  THOU  GREAT  JEHOVAH  69 

This  hymn  takes  us  back  to  the  great  revival  in  the 
old  country  and  the  stirring  scenes  of  the  seventeen- 
forties  amid  which  it  was  written.  But  it  carries  us  for 
the  moment  across  the  border  into  Wales,  for  it  was 
written  originally  in  the  Welsh  and  not  the  English 
language. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

In  our  study  of  “  Children  of  the  heavenly  King  ”  we 
left  Cennick  and  Howell  Harris  at  Swindon  in  1741, 
preaching  antiphonally.  As  the  mob  squirted  mud  on 
each  in  turn,  the  other  preached.  Harris  was  a  young 
Welsh  layman  of  the  robust  and  hearty  type;  he  had 
already  lighted  the  flame  of  revival  in  Wales,  while  the 
Wesleys  were  still  in  Georgia.  He  began  first  to  visit 
from  house  to  house,  and  then  to  preach  to  the  people 
who  thronged  to  hear  him.  He  made  many  converts 
and  gathered  them  into  “  societies  ” ;  and  he  drew  to 
his  side  many  preachers,  some  of  them  from  the  estab¬ 
lished  Church  itself.  Among  them,  and  the  one  who 
most  interests  us,  was  William  Williams,  author  of 
“  Guide  me,  O  Thou  Great  Jehovah.” 

When  John  Wesley  went  on  a  preaching  tour  in  Wales, 
he  found  this  band  of  preachers  already  at  work;  and 
with  a  great  advantage  over  himself,  who  could  speak 
no  Welsh.  Howell  Harris  was  a  Calvinist,  but  he  and 
Wesley  loved  each  other  instinctively,  and  each  re¬ 
joiced  in  the  other’s  success.  But  when  the  split  in  the 
revival  forces  came  in  1741,  the  Welsh  preachers  took 
Whitefield’s  side.  “  The  people  are  wounded  by  scores, 
and  flock  under  the  Word  by  thousands,”  Harris  wrote 
him  in  1742.  And  in  the  year  following  the  Welsh 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


70 

Calvinistic  Methodist  Church  was  organized,  with 
Whitefield  in  the  moderator’s  chair. 

The  revival  preachers  were  much  hindered  by  the 
lack  of  spiritual  and  warm-hearted  hymns  in  Welsh  to 
stir  the  people’s  hearts.  In  Wales,  as  in  England,  the 
parish  churches  were  still  singing  metrical  Psalm  ver¬ 
sions,  and  spiritual  songs  were  few.  Soon  after  organiz¬ 
ing  the  Calvinistic  Methodists,  Harris  summoned  a 


THE  REV.  WILLIAM  WILLIAMS 


group  of  preachers  to  a  contest,  of  a  sort  not  unfamiliar 
in  fervid  and  musical  Wales,  at  competitive  hymn 
writing.  The  prize  fell  easily  to  William  Williams,  who 
had  the  poet’s  passion  and  a  gift  of  verse-writing. 
Therefore  it  was  not  very  long  before  he  was  recognized 
as  poet  laureate  of  the  Welsh  revival. 

His  hymns,  with  their  passion  and  sweetness,  and  an 
underlying  tone  of  pathos,  seemed  at  once  to  fly  abroad 


GUIDE  ME,  O  THOU  GREAT  JEHOVAH 


71 

as  if  the  winds  carried  them.  He  began  to  gather  and 
print  them,  under  the  title  of  Halleluiah  in  1744;  and 
in  a  second  part  published  in  1745  appeared  the  Welsh 
original  of  “  Guide  me,  O  Thou  Great  Jehovah.”  A 
new  series  entitled  Hosannah ,  began  to  appear  in  1751, 
and  was  complete  in  1754.  Other  volumes  followed  at 
later  dates.  Williams  also  wrote  and  published  Eng¬ 
lish  hymns:  fifty-one  of  them  as  Hosannah  to  the  Son 
of  David  in  1759,  and  seventy-one  more  as  Gloria  in 
excel  sis  in  1772. 

“  Guide  me,  O  Thou  Great  Jehovah  ”  had  been  put 
into  English  by  another  Williams  (the  Rev.  Peter)  in 
1771.  William  Williams  adopted  his  colleague’s  first 
verse,  himself  translated  the  second  and  third,  added  a 
fourth,  and  printed  the  whole  English  version  in  a  leaflet, 
about  1772,  with  this  heading: 

A  FAVOURITE  HYMN, 
sung  by 

Lady  Huntingdon’s  Young  Collegians. 

Printed  by  the  desire  of  many  Christian  friends. 

Lord,  give  it  Thy  blessing! 


Lady  Huntingdon,  of  whom  we  shall  hear  again, 
was  a  great  lady,  whose  whole  heart  and  soul  were  in 
Whitefield’s  work.  She  had  founded  a  college  at 
Trevecca  in  South  Wales  to  educate  young  preachers, 
and  it  was  in  the  college  chapel  that  the  “  many  Chris¬ 
tian  friends  ”  had  heard  the  hymn.  It  plainly  made  a 
great  impression.  Lady  Huntingdon  put  it  into  the  books 
used  in  the  chapels  she  had  built.  Whitefield  added  it 
in  1774  to  his  popular  hymn  book  used  in  the  London 
Tabernacle.  Toplady  put  it  into  his  collection  of  1776, 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


72 

dedicated  to  the  God  of  Elegance.  From  these  books 
its  use  spread  far  and  wide.  Few  English  hymns  have 
started  so  auspiciously  and  held  the  pace  so  long. 


THE  POET  OF  THE  WELSH  REVIVAL 

William  Williams  was  born  at  Cefn-y-Coed  in  1717, 
of  parents  who  were  active  dissenters  from  the  Church 
of  England  system,  which  was  established  by  law  in 
Wales  also.  His  education  was  carried  on  with  a  view 
to  making  him  a  physician;  but  Providence  had  other 
uses  for  him. 

On  a  Sunday  morning  in  1738  he  happened  to  attend 
a  lifeless  service  in  the  parish  church  of  the  little 
village  of  Talgarth.  On  leaving  the  church  the  con¬ 
gregation,  instead  of  scattering  to  their  homes,  gathered 
about  the  short,  sturdy  figure  of  a  man  who  began  to 
preach  from  one  of  the  flat  gravestones,  exhorting  the 
people  to  repent  and  escape  the  wrath  to  come.  The 
preacher  was  Howell  Harris,  and  his  impassioned  oratory 
could  sway  such  a  Welsh  crowd  as  the  wind  sways  the 
wheat.  He  reached  the  heart  of  young  Williams,  and 
changed  his  life.  The  young  man  left  the  churchyard 
with  the  purpose  of  devoting  his  life  to  the  ministry. 

In  1740,  Williams  was  ordained  deacon  in  the  Church 
of  England,  and  was  given  a  small  curacy  up  in  the 
mountains.  But  Howell  Harris  was  his  real  bishop; 
his  heart  was  with  the  revival  movement  and  not  with 
the  Establishment.  With  several  other  clergy  of  the 
established  Church,  he  gave  up  his  curacy  and  joined 
the  dissenting  revivalists,  though  still  “  in  deacon’s 
orders.” 

He  became  an  itinerant  preacher,  and  never  obtained 


GUIDE  ME,  O  THOU  GREAT  JEHOVAH  73 

fuller  orders  in  the  ministry  of  the  Church  of  England. 
That  his  bishop  refused  them  is  often  stated,  but  does 
not  seem  to  be  clearly  proved.  Whatever  the  bishop 
may  have  thought  of  his  course,  Williams  made  an 
extraordinary  record  as  an  itinerant  evangelist.  He 
took  the  whole  of  Wales  for  his  parish.  His  travels  for 
forty- three  years  are  said  to  make  an  average  of  2230 
miles  a  year,  at  a  time  when  there  were  no  railroads  and 
few  stage-coaches.  In  this  way  the  greater  pakt  of 
Williams’  life  was  spent,  not  in  a  preacher’s  study,  but 
in  the  great  world  of  out  of  doors.  The  breaking  of 
dawn,  the  play  of  sunlight  and  shadow,  the  changing 
cloud  effects,  the  gathering  storm,  the  approach  of  twi¬ 
light,  and  the  darkness  of  night  —  these  were  the  things 
he  lived  with.  The  wonderful  scenery  of  his  native  land, 
with  its  visions  of  mountain  and  valley,  brooks  rushing 
down  the  hills  and  placid  rivers  among  the  fields,  the 
seashore  with  its  rocks  and  harbors  —  all  these  he  saw 
every  day  with  a  poet’s  eye. 

And  just  as  the  gospel  story  itself  seems  always  to 
have  the  landscape  of  Palestine  for  a  setting  and  so 
many  of  Christ’s  sayings  reveal  his  observation  of  na¬ 
ture,  so  Williams’  poetry  is  set  in  the  landscape  of 
Wales,  and  his  hymns,  the  Welsh  ones  especially,  are 
full  of  allusions  to  the  scenery  amid  which  he  lived. 
The  world  of  nature  became  to  him  a  parable  of  the 
world  of  grace.  Even  the  unattractive  opening  of  his 
“  O’er  the  gloomy  hills  of  darkness  ”  is  said  to  reproduce 
an  early  morning  vision  of  the  Prescelly  hills  looming 
dark  through  the  mist,  while  in  the  east  the  dawn  was 
breaking  up  the  gloom  with  the  promise  of  a  new  day. 

It  was  a  picturesque  life,  but  it  was  not  an  easy  one ; 
for  nature  is  not  always  kind.  It  involved  much  ex- 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


74 

posure  and  constant  fatigue.  It  incurred  also  that 
menace  of  the  mob  of  which  all  these  revival  preachers 
were  victims.  There  is  still  extant  a  letter  of  Howell 
Harris  to  Whitefield  describing  an  attack  of  ruffians 
armed  with  guns  and  staves,  made  upon  Williams  while 
preaching  in  Cardiganshire,  in  which  he  was  beaten  with¬ 
out  mercy.  And  Harris  writes  that  the  attack  was  in¬ 
stigated  by  “  a  gentleman  of  the  neighborhood.”  Such 
self-sacrificing  years  of  evangelism  and  those  weary 
thousands  of  miles  sum  up  the  remainder  of  Williams’ 
life:  (not  that  many  of  the  rich  or  great  of  the  earth 
were  concerned  to  compute  the  sum.  But  his  verse 
must  have  made  him  a  certain  reputation  outside  of 
Wales,  for  the  eminently  genteel  Gentleman’s  Magazine 
of  1791  gave  him  quite  a  nice  obituary  notice. 

“  After  languishing  some  time,  he  finished  his  course 
and  life  together,  January  nth,  1791,  aged  74.”  That 
sounds  as  if  the  last  long  mile  had  been  the  hardest  of 
all.  He  was  buried  in  the  churchyard  of  an  obscure 
Welsh  village,  and,  as  the  inscription  upon  his  grave¬ 
stone  reads,  “  He  waits  here  the  coming  of  the  Morning 
Star.” 

Williams  was  evidently  one  of  those  sweet  and  wist¬ 
ful  souls  who  cross  this  world  as  pilgrims  and  strangers, 
with  their  eyes  fixed  on  a  better  one.  He  endured  and 
magnified  the  rough  lot  of  a  revival  preacher  of  those 
days,  abounded  in  labors,  and  suffered  perils  for  his 
Master’s  sake.  His  load  was  lightened  a  bit  by  a  native 
sense  of  humor,  but  he  needed  for  himself  and  he 
preached  to  others  the  consolations  of  the  gospel.  And 
it  is  altogether  pleasant  to  remember  him  as  we  sing 
his  pilgrim  hymn. 

But  we  should  be  doing  a  great  injustice  to  Williams’ 


GUIDE  ME,  O  THOU  GREAT  JEHOVAH 


75 

memory  if  we  were  to  think  of  him  simply  as  the  author 
of  one  English  hymn  that  perhaps  we  like  to  sing.  His 
great  work  as  a  religious  poet  was  done  in  his  own 
Welsh  tongue.  We  who,  like  John  Wesley,  cannot  speak 
Welsh  and  who  know  much  less  of  Wales  than  he  did, 
can  hardly  understand  how  great  a  place  the  hymns  of 
Williams  hold  in  Welsh  religious  history  and  Welsh 
hearts.  On  this  subject  it  is  better  to  let  one  of  his 
countrymen  speak  out  of  his  personal  knowledge.  The 
Rev.  H.  Elvet  Lewis,  himself  a  poet,  writes:  “  What  Paul 
Gerhardt  has  been  to  Germany,  what  Watts  has  been  to 
England,  that  and  more  has  William  Williams  been  to 
the  little  principality  of  Wales.  His  hymns  have  both 
stirred  and  soothed  a  whole  nation  for  a  hundred  years ; 
they  have  helped  to  fashion  a  nation’s  character  and  to 
deepen  a  nation’s  piety.”  They  have  been  sung,  Mr. 
Lewis  goes  on  to  say,  by  the  shepherd  on  moor  and 
mountain,  by  the  blacksmith  at  his  anvil,  by  the  miner 
underground,  by  the  milkmaid  of  an  early  morning,  by 
the  mother  beside  the  cradle,  by  the  funeral  procession 
accompanying  the  dead  to  the  long  home,  by  the  young 
in  their  hour  of  temptation  and  the  veteran  in  his  failing 
strength,  and  by  the  family  of  the  Lord  Christ  at  the 
breaking  of  the  bread  in  His  house.  “  His  hymns  be¬ 
came  the  sacred  ballads  of  the  nation.  As  Luther  sang 
Germany  into  Protestantism,  so  did  Williams  sing  the 
Wales  of  the  eighteenth  century  into  piety.” 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

i.  The  writer  of  this  study  is  quite  out  of  sympathy 
with  any  movement  to  revive  the  name  “  Jehovah  ”  in 
everyday  use.  And  he  hopes  that  the  rendering  “  Je- 


76  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

liovah  is  my  shepherd  ”  (Ps.  23  :  1)  in  what  is  called  the 
“  American  Standard  Bible  ”  may  never  become  the 
standard  of  our  nurseries  and  schools.  As  a  title  of  God, 
the  Hebrew  word  rendered  “  Jehovah  ”  seems  to  belong 
exclusively  to  His  people  of  an  older  time.  It  is  archaic 
and  unfamiliar  to  our  Christian  habits  of  speech ;  and 
to  introduce  it  into  the  Twenty-third  Psalm  seems  to 
disconnect  the  Psalm  from  our  present-day  life.  But 
in  this  particular  hymn  the  case  is  quite  different.  The 
poet  is  trying  to  recreate  the  Old  Testament  atmosphere, 
and  is  employing  the  journey  of  the  Children  of  Israel 
as  a  symbol  of  the  Christian  life.  He  almost  makes  us 
feel  ourselves  a  part  of  the  marching  host,  and  the 
imagination  without  an  effort  thinks  of  God  as  Jehovah. 

To  the  writer  the  phrase  “  Great  Jehovah  ”  here  used 
has  also  the  surreptitious  attraction  of  a  patriotic  sug¬ 
gestion  ;  for  he  finds  himself  unable  to  read  or  sing  the 
first  line  without  a  momentary  vision  of  Ethan  Allen 
knocking  at  the  door  of  Fort  Ticonderoga  and  demand¬ 
ing  its  surrender  “  In  the  name  of  the  Great  Jehovah 
and  the  Continental  Congress.” 

2.  Garrett  Horder,  the  English  hymnologist,  twice 
says  in  his  Hymn  Lover  that  Newman’s  “  Lead,  kindly 
Light  ”  has  almost  supplanted  “  Guide  me,  O  Thou 
Great  Jehovah.”  Does  this  remark  tally  with  our  own 
observation  and  experience? 

If  so,  we  may  remember  that  Cardinal  Newman  was 
well  aware  that  Dykes’s  tune  had  carried  his  verses  into 
popularity.  And  we  may  well  ask  if  Williams’  hymn  is 
not  in  need  of  a  deeply  felt,  elevated,  and  melodious 
tune  that  will  fitly  mate  with  the  words.  If  the  hymn 
is  a  little  rough,  it  is  not  more  so  than  a  marching  song 
ought  to  be.  It  is  strong  and  full  of  feeling  and  dra- 


HYMNS 


207  $ntat 

Ciiersalem.  M.  8.7.4.  Alaw  Gymreig 


i«j'  Arglwydd,  arwain  trwy’r  anialwch 
Fi,  bererin  gwael  ei  wedd, 

Nad  oes  ynof  nerth  na  bywyd, 

Fel  yh  gorwedd  yn  y  bedd: 
ere w  HQllalluog 

Vdyw'r  un  a’ra  cw>d  i’r  lan. 


mf  Guide  me,  0  Thou  Great  Jehovah, 
Pilgrim  through  this  barren  land; 
p  I  am  weak  {eves)  but  Thou  art  mighty. 
Hold  tne  with  Thy  powerful  hand: 

/  Bread  of  heaven, 

Feed  me  now  and  evermore. 


THE  HYMN  AS  SET  IN  THE  HYMNAL  OF  THE  CALVINISTIC 

METHODIST  CHURCH 

(Note  that  the  fifth  line  is  sung  three  times.) 


78  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

matic  force.  It  wants  a  tune  with  a  thrill  in  it.  Of 
the  tunes  provided  in  The  Hymnal  revised ,  Lowell 
Mason’s  “  Oliphant  ”  begins  impressively,  but  soon  goes 
all  to  pieces ;  Viner’s  “  Dismissal  ”  is  easy  to  sing,  but 
does  not  appeal  to  the  imagination  and  the  feelings  as 
the  words  do.  It  seems  as  if  their  true  setting  were  yet 
to  seek.  But  might  not  our  search  end  happily  with 
the  tune  “  Caersalem,”  here  printed?  It  is  the  tune  to 
which  the  original  hymn  is  sung  in  Wales  itself.  The 
Welsh  people  have  understood  it  better  than  we  have. 
We  have  thought  of  it  as  timid  and  pathetic;  they  have 
thought  of  it  as  resolute  and  confident.  And  in  their 
tune  we  hear  the  trumpeters  at  the  head  of  the  march¬ 
ing  host  sounding  forth  the  clear  call  of  faith,  and  can 
catch  the  response  from  every  quickened  heart, 

“  I  am  weak,  but  Thou  are  mighty, 

Hold  me  with  Thy  powerful  hand.” 

3.  In  translating  his  hymn  for  Lady  Huntingdon’s 
college,  Williams  added  a  fourth  verse,  which  reads: 

“  Musing  on  my  habitation, 

Musing  on  my  heav’nly  home, 

Fills  my  soul  with  holy  longings: 

Come,  my  Jesus,  quickly  come; 

Vanity  is  all  I  see; 

Lord,  I  long  to  be  with  Thee !  ” 

That  the  addition  spoils  the  hymn  is  perhaps  hardly  a 
topic  for  discussion.  It  is  as  if  the  new  verse  said,  “  I 
was  not  really  marching  in  the  open:  only  meditating 
here  in  my  study.” 

4.  What  is  the  meaning  of  “  Death  of  deaths  and  hell’s 
Destruction”?  And  should  “Destruction”  be  capital¬ 
ized  ?  Was  Mr.  Horder,  whom  we  have  already  referred 


GUIDE  ME,  O  THOU  GREAT  JEHOVAH 


79 

to,  justified  in  saying  that  the  hymn  is  “  disfigured  by 
the  unpoetic  line,  ‘  Death  of  deaths  and  hell’s  destruc¬ 
tion  ’  ”  ?  The  phrase  seems  certainly  to  have  worried 
a  good  many  people  who  either  did  not  understand  it 
or  else  did  not  like  it.  The  hymnal  of  the  American 
Methodists  has  cut  the  line  out  and  substituted  “  Bear 
me  through  the  swelling  current.” 


VIII 


LORD,  I  AM  THINE,  ENTIRELY  THINE 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Lord,  I  am  Thine,  entirely  Thine, 

Purchased  and  saved  by  blood  Divine; 

With  full  consent  Thine  I  would  be, 

And  own  Thy  sovereign  right  in  me. 

2  Grant  one  poor  sinner  more  a  place 
Among  the  children  of  Thy  grace; 

A  wretched  sinner  lost  to  God, 

But  ransomed  by  Emmanuel’s  blood. 

3  Thine  would  I  live,  Thine  would  I  die. 

Be  Thine  through  all  eternity: 

The  vow  is  past  beyond  repeal; 

Now  will  I  set  the  solemn  seal. 

4  Here,  at  that  cross  where  flows  the  blood 
That  bought  my  guilty  soul  for  God, 

Thee  my  new  Master  now  I  call, 

And  consecrate  to  Thee  my  all. 

Rev.  Samuel  Davies.  Published  1769 

Note:  The  hymn  was  written  in  Virginia  before  1759,  but  first 
printed  in  Dr.  Gibbons’  London  hymn  book  after  Davies’  death 
(1769).  The  four  verses  given  above  are  taken  from  that  book: 
three  other  verses  there  found  are  quoted  under  “  Some  Points  for 
Discussion.” 


80 


LORD,  1  AM  THINE,  ENTIRELY  THINE 


8l 


THE  BEGINNINGS  OF  HYMN  SINGING  AMONG 
AMERICAN  PRESBYTERIANS 

Whitefield,  in  his  zeal  to  spread  the  great  revival, 
made  no  more  of  the  long  voyage  to  the  American 
colonies  than  of  crossing  the  border  into  Wales.  Seven 
times  he  came,  and  on  his  seventh  missionary  tour  died 
of  exhaustion  in  the  home  of  the  Presbyterian  pastor 
at  Newburyport,  Massachusetts,  and  was  buried  be¬ 
neath  the  Presbyterian  church  there.  An  elaborate 
cenotaph  stands  foursquare  beside  the  pulpit,  and  in  the 
crypt  beneath  they  still  show  you  Whitefield’s  skull  and 
bones  within  the  glass  lid  of  his  coffin,  shrined  like  “  the 
relics  ”  of  a  saint. 

Sitting  in  the  church  one  Sunday  of  the  summer  of 
1922  the  writer  tried  to  picture  those  wonderful  evan¬ 
gelistic  tours  of  the  great  preacher:  the  posting  from 
town  to  town  without  rest ;  the  stir  of  arrival  with  the 
eager  greetings  of  his  sympathizers  pressing  close,  and 
from  the  background  cold  looks,  even  occasionally  a 
stone;  the  quickly  gathering  throng  so  soon  under  the 
spell  of  his  oratory,  sometimes  so  wrought  upon  that 
their  cries  of  distress  almost  drowned  that  marvelous 
voice;  the  flames  of  religious  excitement  rising  higher 
and  spreading  from  place  to  place  into  a  conflagration 
that  seemed  to  cover  the  land.  For  his  heart-searching 
gospel  was  a  sword  rather  than  a  message  of  peace.  It 
“  set  a  man  at  variance  against  his  father,  and  the 
daughter  against  her  mother  ”  and  disrupted  the  house¬ 
holds  of  faith.  Most  of  the  edifices  of  his  own  Church 
of  England  and  many  of  other  denominations  shut  their 
doors  against  him ;  and  the  Presbyterian  Church  was 
rent  into  two  rival  and  contentious  synods,  the  one  of 


82 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


his  supporters,  the  other  of  his  opponents.  It  mattered 
little  about  the  closing  of  the  churches,  for  no  building 
could  hold  the  throngs,  no  opposition  could  quench  the 
flames  of  the  revival  that  spread  into  a  “  Great  Awak¬ 
ening  ”  which  changed  the  face  of  American  religion ; 
most  of  all,  perhaps,  the  face  of  American  Presbyterian¬ 
ism.  Presbyterians  of  our  time  seem  hardly  aware  of 
the  influence  of  Whitefield  in  unmaking  and  remaking 
their  Church. 

Sitting  that  day  in  the  Newburyport  church  the  writer 
looked  at  Whitefield’s  monument,  but  it  seemed  to  him 
that  the  hymn  books  in  every  pew  were  an  even  greater 
monument.  For  it  was  that  “  Great  Awakening  ”  which 
turned  the  Presbyterian  Church  in  America  from  a 
Psalm  singing  into  a  hymn  singing  Church.  They  were 
still  conscientiously  singing  the  old  metrical  Psalms 
(“  Rous’s  Version  ”  mostly)  when  Whitefield  came  and 
stirred  men’s  hearts  to  the  depths  with  his  impassioned 
gospel.  To  such  overcharged  feelings  singing  affords  a 
natural  relief.  But  both  preacher  and  hearers  felt  that 
this  new  preaching  and  the  old  metrical  Psalmody  did 
not  fit.  As  Whitefield  and  his  helpers  made  the  cross  to 
shine  before  men’s  eyes,  their  hearts  demanded  songs 
that  caught  and  reflected  the  glory  of  that  cross.  Wher¬ 
ever  the  revival  spread,  a  spontaneous  movement  began 
to  substitute  the  evangelical  Psalms  and  hymns  of  Dr. 
Watts  for  the  familiar  Psalm  versions.  In  the  Presby¬ 
terian  churches  that  movement  began  early.  It  met  vio¬ 
lent  opposition  and  roused  that  bitter  “  Psalmody  Con¬ 
troversy  ”  which  makes  one  of  the  epochs  of  that 
Church’s  history.  But  it  never  halted  until,  after  years 
of  strife  and  even  disruption,  it  had  borne  down  the 
opposition  of  “  the  Psalm  singers  ”  and  made  that 


LORD,  I  AM  THINE,  ENTIRELY  THINE  83 

Church  the  hymn  singing  body  it  is  to-day.  We  who 
love  hymns  as  one  of  God’s  best  gifts  might  well  pause 
to  remember  how  hardly  our  fathers  won  for  us  the 
right  to  sing  them.  For  that  is  true  of  all  denominations 
that  bear  the  impress  of  Calvin’s  hand. 

THE  FIRST  HYMNS  OF  AMERICAN  PRESBY¬ 
TERIANISM 

The  hymn  we  are  studying  is  one  of  the  landmarks  of 
the  movement  just  described.  It  was  written  by  Samuel 
Davies,  the  most  brilliant  of  Presbyterian  clergymen  in 
the  colonies.  He  was  among  the  first  to  chafe  under 
the  yoke  of  the  old  Psalmody  and  on  his  own  responsi¬ 
bility  to  introduce  human  hymns  into  his  services.  He 
was  the  earliest  Presbyterian  hymn  writer  in  the  col¬ 
onies.  More  than  that,  he  was  the  earliest  American 
hymn  writer  of  any  denomination  who  wrote  hymns 
still  kept  in  our  hymn  books  and  sung  by  our  congre¬ 
gations. 

The  story  of  the  hymn  takes  us  into  Virginia.  And 
we  may  think  of  Virginia  as  the  colony  most  nearly  a 
reproduction  of  eighteenth  century  England  —  in  its 
laws  and  institutions,  its  moral  conditions  and  social 
prejudices.  Among  other  things  the  English  Church 
was  established  and  rigorously  upheld  both  by  law  and 
custom.  It  was  bad  form  socially  to  be  a  dissenter,  and 
unlawful  for  dissenters  to  meet  for  worship.  When 
Whitefield  came  he  was  received  as  a  minister  of  the 
Church  of  England,  but  (perhaps  for  that  reason)  his 
work  there  was  less  effective  than  elsewhere. 

It  seems  to  have  been  a  “  one-eyed  Robinson  ”  who 
kindled  the  spark  of  revival.  And  a  few  of  “  the  awak¬ 
ened,”  who  found  no  help  in  religion  as  established,  be- 


84  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

gan  about  1743  to  meet  in  the  home  of  Samuel  Morris 
to  listen  to  his  reading  of  Whitefield’s  printed  sermons. 
Similar  gatherings  began  in  other  houses,  and  it  was 
eventually  determined  to  build  meeting-houses  in  which 
the  gospel  might  be  freely  preached. 

The  “  Newly  awakened  in  Hanover  County  ”  put 
themselves  under  the  care  of  the  “  Newside  Presby¬ 
terians,”  as  Whitefield’s  supporters  were  called.  But 
Church  and  State  took  alarm.  The  court  demanded  the 
reasons  for  absence  from  the  church  services,  and  the 
Governor  issued  an  order  against  the  meetings  of  the 
“  New  Lights.”  While  their  trials  were  still  pending  the 
Presbytery  of  Newcastle,  Delaware,  ordained  young 
Samuel  Davies  with  a  view  to  shepherding  these  new 
congregations.  He  succeeded  in  getting  from  the  Gen¬ 
eral  Court  of  Virginia  a  special  license  to  preach  to 
them,  and  was  wonderfully  successful  with  two  extreme 
classes,  the  gentlemen  and  the  black  slaves.  He  was  so 
touched  by  the  singing  of  the  latter  that  he  sent  to 
England  for  supplies  of  Watts’s  “  Psalms  and  Hymns,” 
as  he  felt  those  warmer  evangelical  strains  made  more 
appeal  to  the  emotional  blacks  than  the  old  metrical 
Psalm  versions.  To  Davies,  as  to  most  of  the  preachers 
who  favored  “  human  hymns,”  the  great  office  of  the 
hymn  was  to  enforce  the  appeal  of  the  sermon.  When 
he  could  not  find  a  hymn  in  Watts  suitable  to  the  ser¬ 
mon  in  hand,  he  wrote  one  of  his  own  in  Watts’s  style 
and  manner.  His  hymns  were  composed  in  the  glow 
of  sermon-writing,  and  put  into  verse  the  points  he  most 
wished  to  impress  upon  the  heart  and  conscience.  He 
gave  them  out  line  by  line  to  be  sung  after  the  sermon, 
and  sometimes  when  requested  to  print  a  particular 
sermon,  he  printed  the  appropriate  hymn  also  at  the  end. 


SAMUEL  DAVIES 


86 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Most  of  his  hymns,  and  of  course  most  of  his  sermons 
also,  remained  unprinted  during  his  life.  But  Davies, 
while  in  England  on  a  mission  to  raise  money  for 
Princeton  College,  had  formed  a  warm  friendship  with 
Dr.  Thomas  Gibbons,  an  influential  pastor  in  London, 
and  a  friend  by  the  way  both  of  Dr.  Watts  and  Lady 
Huntingdon.  In  1757,  Davies,  getting  up  from  a  dan¬ 
gerous  illness,  wrote  Dr.  Gibbons  that  he  wanted  to  be 
useful  after  he  was  dead,  and  had  put  in  his  will  an 
order  to  transmit  all  his  sermon  manuscripts  to  Dr. 
Gibbons,  to  publish  such  as  might  promise  to  do  good. 
And  so,  after  Davies’  death  in  1761,  his  manuscript  ser¬ 
mons  (with  the  appended  hymns)  were  boxed  up  in 
Princeton  and  made  the  long  voyage  to  England  in 
safety. 

Dr.  Gibbons  got  ready  enough  sermons  to  fill  three 
volumes,  and  printed  them  in  1765.  They  were  so  success¬ 
ful  that  he  published  other  volumes  later,  and  all  have 
often  been  reprinted  since.  In  his  preface  he  spoke  of 
the  hymns  and  expressed  a  purpose  of  printing  them  also 
in  the  future.  This  he  did  in  a  hymn  book  of  his  own, 
Hymns  adapted  to  Divine  Worship,  published  in  1769: 
sixteen  of  them  in  all  with  this  note,  “  The  Pieces  in  the 
following  Miscellany  ascribed  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  Davies, 
were  found  in  his  Manuscripts  intrusted  with  the  Editor.” 
So  it  was  that  eight  years  after  Davies  had  been  laid  to 
rest  at  Princeton  his  hymns  were  given  to  the  world  in 
far-off  London,  as  the  last  kindly  office  of  the  hand  of 
friendship. 

Dr.  Gibbons’  hymn  book  reached  a  small  circle,  but 
Dr.  John  Rippon  gave  a  wider  circulation  to  seven  of 
Davies’  hymns  he  took  from  it  into  his  popular  Baptist 
Selection  of  1787.  The  particular  hymn  we  are  now 


LORD ,  I  AM  THINE ,  ENTIRELY  THINE  87 

studying  he  spoiled  by  cutting  it  down  to  two  verses  and 
changing  the  first  line  to  a  question,  “  Lord,  am  I  Thine, 
entirely  Thine  ?  ”  Perhaps  that  is  why  it  is  so  little 
used  in  England.  The  one  best  known  there  is  “  Great 
God  of  wonders!  all  Thy  ways,”  which  has  been  found 
in  over  a  hundred  English  hymn  books.  Rippon’s  muti¬ 
lated  text  of  the  present  hymn  was  copied  into  several 
early  books  in  this  country.  But  when  the  Presbyterian 
Church  in  the  U.S.A.  ventured  to  make  its  own  Psalms 
and  Hymns  in  1830,  “  Lord,  I  am  Thine  ”  was  included 
as  Dr.  Gibbons  had  printed  it.  It  has  been  a  standard 
hymn  ever  since  and  is  familiarly  used  also  by  the  Re¬ 
formed,  Baptist,  Congregationalist,  Methodist,  and  Luth¬ 
eran  Churches.  In  how  many  hearts  is  it  tenderly  as¬ 
sociated  with  the  hour  of  self-surrender  and  the  scene 
of  the  first  Communion ! 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Some  twenty-three  miles  below  Wilmington,  in  New¬ 
castle  County,  Delaware,  stands  a  colonial  Presbyterian 
church  known  as  “  Old  Drawyer’s,”  which  is  still  the 
shrine  of  a  yearly  pious  pilgrimage.  On  a  farm  not  more 
than  twelve  miles  away  Samuel  Davies  was  born, 
November  3,  1723,  of  plain  Welsh  parents.  He  was 
educated  at  the  academy  of  Samuel  Blair  at  Fagg’s 
Manor,  who  also  prepared  him  for  his  ordination  by  the 
Presbytery  of  Newcastle  in  February,  1747. 

Davies’  work  in  Virginia  was  made  difficult  at  first 
by  a  physical  breakdown  supposed  to  indicate  a  hopeless 
stage  of  consumption,  and  to  this  was  added  the  sorrow 
of  a  young  wife’s  death.  But  he  went  bravely  on,  often 
preaching  by  day  when  so  ill  that  attendants  had  to  sit 


88  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

up  with  him  by  night.  He  recovered  his  health,  and  it 
was  probably  on  account  of  his  persuasive  eloquence 
that  he  was  chosen  to  go  abroad  with  Gilbert  Tennent 
on  behalf  of  Princeton  College. 

Coming  back  in  February,  1755,  he  found  the  Virginia 
settlements  greatly  agitated  at  the  aggressions  of  the 
French  and  Indian  alliance.  The  alarm  spread  when, 
in  July,  the  little  army  of  General  Braddock  sent  out  to 
capture  Fort  Duquesne  was  defeated,  with  only  a  rem¬ 
nant  saved  by  the  courage  of  George  Washington,  then 
a  youth  of  twenty-three.  The  always  fervid  preacher 
now  became  a  passionate  patriot,  arousing  Virginia  by 
his  call  to  arms. 

It  was  in  printing  a  sermon  preached  to  Captain  Over¬ 
ton’s  Company  of  Independent  Volunteers  in  August  of 
the  same  year  that  Davies  added  the  prophetic  footnote 
so  often  quoted,  “  I  may  point  out  to  the  public  that 
heroic  youth,  Col.  Washington,  whom  I  cannot  but  hope 
Providence  has  hitherto  preserved,  in  so  signal  a  manner, 
for  some  important  service  to  his  country.” 

Three  years  later  Davies  was  called  to  succeed  the 
famous  Jonathan  Edwards  as  president  of  Princeton 
College.  He  declined  and  only  under  the  pressure  of  a  re- 
election  consented  to  leave  his  beloved  Virginia.  He 
took  to  Princeton  great  gifts  and  a  great  reputation,  but 
had  filled  the  office  hardly  more  than  eighteen  months 
when  he  caught  a  cold  to  which  he  succumbed,  dying  on 
February  4,  1761,  at  the  age  of  thirty-six.  His  grave 
now  makes  one  of  the  famous  Presidents’  Row  at  Prince¬ 
ton,  where  he  lies  next  to  Jonathan  Edwards. 

Davies  was  not  only  the  most  brilliant  but  quite  the 
most  engaging  figure  of  colonial  Presbyterianism.  Ma- 
kemie  may  have  been  a  greater  administrator,  but  one 


T* 


^  V~>  **•*1 


<r 


V*  ^  ,?\j!  ^ 


go 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


imagines  him  a  little  rough.  Gilbert  Tennent  in  early 
life  was  possibly  an  equally  effective  preacher,  but  he 
had  a  vein  of  hardness  and  censoriousness.  His  later 
preaching  did  not  sustain  his  reputation,  while  even  now 
when  we  read  Davies’  printed  sermons  we  catch  the  light 
and  feel  the  glow.  They  far  surpass  the  printed  sermons 
of  Whitefield  himself,  which  indeed  make  poor  reading. 
Makemie,  Tennent,  Davies  —  all  three  were  God’s  am¬ 
bassadors,  but  Davies  had  the  gracious  manners  and 
social  accomplishments  of  the  trained  diplomat.  He  had 
the  inscrutable  quality  we  call  “  charm,”  that  wins  the 
admiration  of  strangers,  and  the  deeper  qualities  of 
mind  and  heart  that  won  from  his  friends  the  fullness  of 
affection  so  frankly  written  in  all  their  reminiscences 
of  him. 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

i.  Dr.  Gibbons  did  not  tell  us  to  which  of  the  manu¬ 
script  sermons  that  came  into  his  hands  this  hymn  was 
appended.  It  seems  to  fit  the  one  he  printed  as  “  XXXI, 
Dedication  to  God  argued  from  Redeeming  Mercy,”  from 
I  Cor.  6:19,  20.  The  preacher  enters  God’s  claim  to 
all  his  hearers  have  and  are ;  their  solemn  business 
at  the  Lord’s  Table  is  “  to  yield  themselves  to  God,  and 
seal  their  indenture  to  be  His.”  He  asks  them  to  follow 
while  he  proposes  the  terms  of  the  transaction,  and,  if 
they  consent,  to  “  rise  and  crowd  round  the  table  of  their 
Lord,  and  there  annex  their  solemn  seals  and  acknowl¬ 
edge  it  to  be  their  act  and  deed.”  And  this  is  the  “  con¬ 
tract  ” :  “  Lord,  here  is  a  poor  sinner,  thy  creature  re¬ 
deemed  by  the  blood  of  thy  Son,  that  has  long  been  a 
slave  to  other  masters,  and  withheld  from  thee  thy  just 


LORD,  I  AM  THINE,  ENTIRELY  THINE 


91 


and  dear-bought  property;  here,  Lord,  I  would  now, 
freely  and  without  reserve,  devote  and  surrender  myself, 
my  soul  and  body,  and  my  all  to  thee,  to  be  universally 
and  for  ever  thine.  And  let  the  omnipotent  God,  let 
angels  and  men,  be  witness  to  the  engagement.” 

Does  there  seem  much  room  to  doubt  that  the  hymn 
was  written  to  be  used  at  the  Communion  service  that 
was  to  follow  this  particular  sermon  ? 

2.  But  at  what  date?  In  The  Hymnal  revised  the 
footnote  gives  it  as  “  published  in  1769  and  that  is  the 
only  date  we  have.  The  sermon  was  preached  in  Virginia 
(before  July,  1759,  that  is  to  say),  is  addressed  to  black 
and  white,  freeman  and  slave,  and  refers  to  a  possible 
persecution  even  unto  death.  May  not  that  suggest  as 
a  date  the  time  of  the  French  and  Indian  aggressions  and 
the  dread  that  the  conquering  French  might  establish  the 
Roman  Catholic  discipline  in  the  colony? 

3.  Dr.  Gibbons  printed  this  hymn  in  seven  verses.  The 
familiar  abridgment  into  four  verses  may  perhaps  be 
of  some  practical  advantage.  But  the  whole  hymn  is 
needed  to  show  its  full  relation  to  Sermon  XXXI.  To 
obtain  this,  insert  after  the  first  verse  in  The  Hymnal 
revised, 


II.  Here,  Lord,  my  Flesh,  my  Soul,  my  All 
I  yield  to  Thee  beyond  Recall; 

Accept  thine  own  so  long  withheld, 

Accept  what  I  so  freely  yield! 

after  the  third  verse, 

V.  Be  thou  the  Witness  of  my  Vow, 

Angels  and  Men  attest  it  too, 

That  to  thy  Board  I  now  repair, 

And  seal  the  sacred  Contract  there. 


g2  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

and  after  the  fourth  verse, 

VII.  Do  Thou  assist  a  feeble  Worm 
The  great  Engagement  to  perform: 

Thy  Grace  can  full  Assistance  lend, 

And  on  that  Grace  I  dare  depend. 

4.  Just  what  is  the  effect  upon  this  hymn  of  the  alter¬ 
ation  made  by  Dr.  Rippon  by  which  the  affirmation  of 
its  first  line  becomes  the  question,  “  Lord,  am  I  Thine, 
entirely  Thine? 


IX 


SWEET  THE  MOMENTS,  RICH  IN 

BLESSING 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Sweet  the  moments,  rich  in  blessing, 

Which  before  the  cross  I  spend; 

Life  and  health  and  peace  possessing 
From  the  sinner’s  dying  Friend. 

2  Here  I’ll  sit,  for  ever  viewing 

Mercy’s  streams  in  streams  of  blood; 
Precious  drops,  my  soul  bedewing, 

Plead  and  claim  my  peace  with  God. 

3  Truly  blessed  is  this  station, 

Low  before  His  cross  to  lie, 

While  I  see  Divine  compassion 
Pleading  in  His  languid  eye. 

4  Love  and  grief  my  heart  dividing, 

With  my  tears  His  feet  I’ll  bathe; 

Constant  still  in  faith  abiding, 

Life  deriving  from  His  death. 

5  For  Thy  sorrows  we  adore  Thee, 

For  the  griefs  that  wrought  our  peace; 
Gracious  Saviour,  we  implore  Thee, 

In  our  hearts  Thy  love  increase. 

The  Hon.  and  Rev.  Walter  Shirley,  1770:  based  upon 
an  earlier  (1757)  hymn  by  the  Rev.  James  Allen. 

93 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


94 

Note:  The  first  four  verses  as  here  given  are  taken  from  Shirley’s 
hymn  book  of  1770;  with  such  changes  as  will  appear  by  com¬ 
parison  with  his  text  hereafter  quoted  in  full.  The  fifth  verse  was 
added  to  the  hymn  in  the  Rev.  Messrs.  Cooke  and  Denton’s  Church 
Hymnal  of  1853. 


In  our  study  of  “  Guide  me,  O  Thou  Great  Jehovah,” 
we  met,  somewhat  casually,  the  Lady  Selina  Shirley,  by 
marriage  Countess  of  Huntingdon.  And  she,  beyond  a 
doubt,  is  the  proper  person  to  introduce  her  first  cousin, 
the  Honorable  and  Reverend  Walter  Shirley,  whose  skill¬ 
ful  hand  gave  to  our  present  hymn  its  familiar  shape. 
Especially  so,  as  it  was  written  to  be  sung  in  her  own 
chapels. 


“  HER  LADYSHIP’S  CONNEXION” 

After  a  dangerous  illness  and  a  deep  experience  Lady 
Huntingdon  “  turned  Methodist,”  as  the  phrase  was,  to 
the  dismay  of  her  friends.  “  I  thank  your  Ladyship,” 
wrote  the  Duchess  of  Buckingham,  “  for  the  information 
concerning  the  Methodist  preachers;  their  doctrines  are 
most  repulsive,  and  strongly  tinctured  with  impertinence 
and  disrespect  towards  their  superiors,  in  perpetually 
endeavoring  to  level  all  ranks,  and  do  away  with  all  dis¬ 
tinctions.  It  is  monstrous  to  be  told,  that  you  have  a 
heart  as  sinful  as  the  common  wretches  that  crawl  on 
the  earth.  This  is  highly  offensive  and  insulting;  and  I 
cannot  but  wonder  that  your  Ladyship  should  relish  any 
sentiments  so  much  at  variance  with  high  rank  and  good 
breeding.”  Her  Ladyship,  on  the  other  hand,  persuaded 
many  of  her  friends,  even  the  Duchess  sometimes,  to  go 
with  her  to  the  Methodist  meetings,  and  gathered  more 
of  them  to  hear  Methodist  preachers  in  her  own  London 


I 


q6  studies  of  familiar  hymns 

drawing-room.  With  her  zeal  and  influence  she  gave  a 
new  turn  to  the  great  revival.  She  introduced  it  into 
aristocratic  circles.  “  Methodism/’  the  cynical  Horace 
Walpole  used  to  complain,  “  is  becoming  quite  fash¬ 
ionable.” 

When  the  split  came  in  1741,  Lady  Huntingdon  ad¬ 
hered  to  Whitefield.  Beginning  as  his  commissary,  she 
soon  took  the  field  in  person  as  commander  in  chief  of 
his  forces.  Whitefield  needed  such  a  patron.  John  Wes¬ 
ley  was  a  master  hand  at  organizing;  and  a  world-wide 
Methodist  Church  is  his  monument.  Whitefield  was  a 
great  preacher,  and  just  that.  He  could  make  converts, 
but  for  organizing  and  molding  these  same  converts  into 
a  permanent  body  of  Christian  workers  he  had  no  gifts. 

Just  here  Lady  Huntingdon  took  hold.  By  birth  and 
marriage  she  was  a  great  lady,  with  full  sense  of  her  high 
social  position.  She  was  also  a  great  woman,  of  the 
“  modern  ”  type :  a  born  executive,  indifferent  to  conven¬ 
tionalities,  bent  on  getting  results,  deeply  religious,  with 
an  autocratic  will.  After  her  husband’s  death  she  had 
houses  and  an  ample  income  at  her  command,  and  was 
generous  to  the  point  of  stripping  herself  of  all  but  bare 
necessities.  She  paid  for  her  first  chapel  by  selling  her 
jewels. 

She  built  many  other  chapels  in  different  parts  of 
England,  and  joined  them  as  a  “  connexion  ”  of  which 
she  was  the  head.  She  sought  out  Calvinistic  clergymen 
to  preach  from  their  pulpits  the  gospel  as  she  believed  it, 
and  when  the  supply  failed,  founded  that  theological 
school  at  Trevecca  whose  “  young  collegians  ”  we  heard 
singing  “  Guide  me,  0  Thou  Great  Jehovah.”  She  re¬ 
tained  the  Prayer  Book  services  in  her  chapels,  but  the 
bright  and  hearty  hymn  singing  she  set  up  in  place  of 


SWEET  THE  MOMENTS ,  RICH  IN  BLESSING  97 

the  droning  of  metrical  Psalms  in  parish  churches,  proved 
a  great  attraction.  She  had  learned  from  the  Wesleys 
and  Whitefield  what  evangelical  songs  had  done  for  the 
revival.  She  loved  them  and  sang  them  and  became  one 
of  the  influences  that  were  gradually  spreading  the  singing 
of  “  hymns  of  human  composure.”  In  the  end  her 
chapels  got  her  into  trouble  with  the  Church  authorities, 
who  liked  neither  her  independence  nor  her  gospel,  and 
in  her  old  age  she  had  to  organize  her  forces  as  a  dissent¬ 
ing  body  outside  the  Church  of  England  —  “  Lady  Hunt¬ 
ingdon’s  Connexion.” 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

The  story  circles  about  Lady  Huntingdon,  and  involves 
a  number  of  people.  There  was  first  the  Rev.  Benjamin 
Ingham,  one  of  the  original  Methodists,  who  went  to 
Georgia  with  the  Wesleys,  and  is  said  to  have  been  too 
handsome  for  a  man.  On  his  return  he  became  a  suc¬ 
cessful  evangelist,  and  formed  many  “  societies  ”  of  his 
converts  in  his  native  Yorkshire  and  thereabouts.  In 
1741  he  married  Lady  Huntingdon’s  sister-in-law.  “  The 
news  I  hear  from  London,”  wrote  Lady  Mary  Wortley 
Montague  from  Rome,  “  is  that  Lady  Margaret  Hastings 
has  disposed  of  herself  to  a  poor,  wandering  Methodist 
preacher.”  In  the  year  following  he  deserted  the  Metho¬ 
dists  and  joined  the  Moravian  Brethren.  After  some 
years  he  changed  his  views  again,  and  left  the  Moravians. 
But  instead  of  joining  Lady  Huntingdon’s  Connexion,  he 
formed  some  thousands  of  his  followers  into  a  brand-new 
denomination,  the  Inghamite  Connexion. 

Now  it  would  never  do  for  Inghamites  to  go  on  singing 
Moravian  hymns,  or  to  fall  back  on  those  of  the  Meth- 


98  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

odists.  And  so  some  of  Ingham’s  helpers  tried  their 
hand  at  hymn  writing.  The  chief  of  these  was  one  James 
Allen,  a  young  Yorkshireman  who  had  been  intended  for 
the  ministry  of  the  established  Church,  but  who  was  con¬ 
verted  under  Ingham’s  preaching,  and  broke  off  a  college 
course  at  the  University  of  Cambridge  to  become  one  of 
his  preachers.  Allen  wrote  more  than  sixty  hymns,  and 
these,  with  others  by  his  colleagues,  he  printed  in  1757 
for  the  Inghamite  Connexion.  He  called  his  book  A 
Collection  of  Hymns  for  the  use  of  those  that  seek,  and 
those  that  have  Redemption  in  the  Blood  of  Christ ;  but 
it  is  more  generally  referred  to  as  “  The  Kendal  Hymn 
Book.”  Naturally  enough,  these  new  hymns  retained  a 
good  many  of  the  Moravian  peculiarities.  Some  that 
dealt  with  the  person  of  our  Lord  had  the  same  un¬ 
pleasant  sensuous  flavor  that  John  Wesley  protested 
against. 

The  Inghamite  collection  is  not  attractive.  If  there 
were  no  better  “  hymns  of  human  composure  ”  than 
these,  most  people  would  gladly  go  back  to  metrical  ver¬ 
sions  of  the  Psalms.  But  for  a  while  they  appealed  to 
the  ecstatic  feelings  of  the  Inghamites.  And  only  for  a 
while  could  Ingham  hold  his  followers  together.  He 
could  not  even  hold  James  Allen.  That  good  man  at  last 
“  saw  the  light  ”  and  became  a  “  Glassite.”  “  My  eyes,” 
he  said,  “  were  never  fully  opened  till  the  latter  end  of 
October,  1762.  How  am  I  now  ashamed  of  my  preaching, 
and  the  hymn  book  I  was  concerned  in  printing !  Almost 
every  page  puts  me  to  the  blush.”  In  the  end  this  honest 
but  erratic  seeker  for  truth  found  such  measure  of 
church  unity  as  he  was  capable  of  by  building  a  private 
chapel  on  his  Yorkshire  estate,  and  ministering  there  un¬ 
disturbed  until  his  death  in  1804. 


2) 


in. 


(  ) 

*.  Oh  >  the;  in  heart  none  may  draw  hack ; 

So  t..  It  v*c  ne’er  Ms  favours  lack, 

But  fed  ihsn  ever  new  s 

Pres”  oss,  and  we  the  prise  frets!  win ; 

Unfold  to  him  t'-h  sjriei  witMa; 
lis's,  ever  Wet  true,  - 

ITT  Htr.F.  my  Jefus  Pm  poflcfTtng, 

W  <;,t  t’s  the  foppinclt  I  know  ; 

While  Jtl«4M|l»  i  am  carmng, 

S-.v  eteft  odours  round  me  flow  ; 

Happy  I'm  in  his  embraces. 

Proving  aft  Ms  bulls Jvvcet; 

Singing  ncctr-ec-Mfog  praifb, 

Mary  dike  before  bis  feet, 

1.  Oh!  bow  happy  ate  the  moments, 

U'bkh  1  here  in  U.mfport  fpcud; 

Life  deriving  bom  Ms  torments, 

Vbo  remains  die  firmer'*  FrfcnJ  a 

Here  ill  lit  lot  ever  viewing 

How  the  blood  flows  from  cadi  vein  ’» 

Lv’ry  bream,  my  foul  bedewing, 

Mortihes  the  carnal  iUnac. 

3.  Really  bk fil’d  is  the  fortion 

Deftin'd  me  by  iovYeigo  grace; 

Still  to  view  divine  eompaihon 

In  the  Saviour’-  brttifei  face; 

Tu  my  fixed  reiulutlon 

jefus  Chriti  my  Lord  to  love* 

At  Ms  feet  to  no.  my  Nation, 

Hot  from  tbetue  re  bait’s  breadth  more. 

jf.  Here  it  is  1  find  my  heaven, 

While  vpoa  my  Lamb  I  gate; 

Love  t  much.  T’ve  more  forgiven  y 

I'M  3  Ojitael?  of  grace  !. 


r 


(  6i  ) 

Fiil'd  with  firmer-like  contrition. 

With  my  tears  Ms  feet  I’ll  bathe; 

Happy  tit  the  fwcet  fruition 

Qt‘  my  Saviour's  pmftfu*  d^sth# 

a.  From  his  pierc’d  and  wounded  body 
ifftt'd  11  reams  of  facred  gore  ; 

From  his  bands  and  feet  fo  bloody 
Flow'd  a  roed elite  for  each  fore; 

From  Ids  fide,  that  fountain  precious. 
Pardons  with  the  blood  did  flow; 

This  to  mile  is  mod  delicious, 

Cattfing  all  within  to  glow. 

<5.  May  I  1U11  enjoy  this  feeling, 

In  all  need  to  Jefus  go  ; 

Prove  his  wounds  each  day  more  nealmg. 
And  from  hence  latvation  draw  : 

May  I  have  the  fpirit'c  unltion 
Ftfinig  me  with  holy  lhame  ; 

Still  retain  a  clofe  eormefUon 

With  the  perfon  of  the  Lamb. 

LV.^/fo 

JESUS,  how  glorious  was  the  day. 
When  Thou  didil  my  releafe  proclaim 
Sweetly  I  furtg  the  hours  away  •, 

I  lung  lsdvatioit  thro'  thy  name, 
i,  i  wonder’d  how  the  carelefs  crowd 
Senfekfo  could  deep  away  their  day  ; 

St>  firoiig  tby  love  in  my  heart  flow'd, 
Such  foiid  peace  it  did  convey  . 

3.  Clofe  with  thy  flock  I  was  combin’d^ 
Nought  could  my  heart  from  their’*  divide 
fcy  blood’s  cementing  power  join’d. 

With  them  i  could  have  liv’d  and  dy’d, 

4.  Beneath  thy  word  refreih'd  1  flood ; 
Thy  word  to  me  with  power  came ; 


THE  HYMN  AS  JAMES  ALLEN  WROTE  IT 


IOO 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Among  Allen’s  contributions  to  the  hymn  book  of  1757 
was  one  of  six  double  verses,  beginning 

“While  my  Jesus  I’m  possessing.” 

We  know  it  is  his  because  he  marked  it  with  his  initials 
in  his  own  copy  of  the  book.  It  was  far  from  being 
good;  and  when  the  Inghamites  were  dispersed,  and  the 
little  book  was  disowned  by  its  editor,  that  hymn  would 
seem  to  have  been  finally  buried  out  of  sight. 

But  now  the  Hon.  and  Rev.  Walter  Shirley  comes  on 
to  play  his  part.  He  was  born  in  1725  of  noble  blood: 
a  younger  brother  of  the  notorious  Earl  Ferrers,  who 
threatened  his  wife,  murdered  his  steward,  and  was 
hanged  after  a  trial  by  the  House  of  Lords.  Shirley  was 
drawn  into  the  revival  movement  through  his  connection 
with  Lady  Huntingdon.  He  became  one  of  her  preachers, 
although  he  remained  in  the  Church  of  England  all  his 
life,  with  a  parish  in  Ireland.  But  his  evangelical  the¬ 
ology  and  his  revival  preaching  kept  him  in  bad  odor  with 
his  bishop  and  fellow  clergymen. 

Lady  Huntingdon  trusted  him,  and  seems  to  have 
given  him  charge  of  the  hymnological  department  of  her 
Connexion ;  but  it  was  under  her  own  eye.  She  attached 
great  importance  to  the  character  of  the  hymns.  If 
she  did  not  write  any  (this  is  uncertain),  she  saw  to  it 
that  none  was  sung  in  her  chapels  of  which  she  did 
not  approve.  For  the  editing  of  her  special  collections 
she  depended  upon  Mr.  Shirley.  It  was  in  the  1770 
edition  of  The  Collection  of  Hymns  sung  in  the  Countess 
of  Huntingdon’ s  Chapel  [at  Bath]  that  Shirley  printed 
the  hymn  we  know  so  well  as  “  Sweet  the  moments,  rich 
in  blessing.”  Like  a  careful  editor  he  had  gone  over 
other  books  to  find  available  material,  even  the  Inghamite 


SWEET  THE  MOMENTS,  RICH  IN  BLESSING  ioi 


book.  By  comparing  Shirley’s  verses  with  the  facsimile 
of  Allen’s  original  as  here  given,  we  can  see  for  our¬ 
selves  how  he  found  the  hymn  embedded  in  Allen’s  mate¬ 
rial,  just  as  a  sculptor  sees  a  symmetrical  figure  embedded 
in  the  rough  and  shapeless  mass  of  marble.  He  had  a 
keen  eye  and  a  cunning  hand,  certainly.  He  made  what 
for  all  practical  purposes  is  a  new  hymn. 

As  we  have  before  us  the  full  text  as  Allen  wrote  it, 
it  may  be  interesting  to  have  also  the  full  text  as  Shirley 
rewrote  it : 


Sweet  the  Moments  rich  in  Blessing 
Which  before  the  Cross  I  spend; 

Life  and  Health,  and  Peace  possessing, 
From  the  Sinner’s  dying  Friend. 

Here  I’ll  sit  for  ever  viewing 
Mercy’s  Streams  in  Streams  of  Blood; 

Precious  Drops  my  soul  bedewing 
Plead  and  claim  my  Peace  with  GOD. 

Truly  blessed  is  this  Station 
Low  before  his  Cross  to  lye; 

While  I  see  divine  Compassion 
Floating  in  his  languid  Eye. 

Here  it  is  I  find  my  Heaven, 

While  upon  the  Lamb  I  gaze; 

Love  I  much,  I’ve  much  forgiven, 

I’m  a  Miracle  of  Grace. 

Love  and  Grief  my  Heart  dividing, 

With  my  Tears  his  Feet  I’ll  bathe; 

Constant  still  in  Faith  abiding, 

Life  deriving  from  his  Death. 

May  I  still  enjoy  this  Feeling, 

In  all  Need  to  Jesus  go; 

Prove  his  Wounds  each  Day  more  healing, 
And  himself  more  deeply  know. 


102 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Comparison  shows  the  weak  parts  of  Shirley’s  compila¬ 
tion  to  be  just  those  that  adhered  most  closely  to  Allen’s 
original:  the  second  quatrain  of  verse  two,  culminating 
in  that  smug  line,  “  I’m  a  Miracle  of  Grace,”  and  the  last 
four  lines  of  all,  which  fail  to  reach  a  climax.  It  was 
easy  for  later  editors  to  drop  these  lines,  but  to  arrange 
a  fitting  climax  for  the  whole  hymn  was  another  matter. 
That  indeed  was  wanting  until  two  English  clergymen, 
Messrs.  Cooke  and  Denton,  in  their  Church  Hymnal  of 
1853,  added  the  fine  lines: 

For  Thy  Sorrows  we  adore  Thee  — 

For  the  Griefs  that  wrought  our  peace  — 

Gracious  Saviour!  we  implore  Thee, 

In  our  hearts  Thy  love  increase. 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  This  is  called  by  hymnologists  a  Good  Friday  hymn. 
Until  recent  years  no  notice  was  taken  of  that  day  in 
Presbyterian  and  some  other  churches.  The  observance 
of  Good  Friday  came  about  as  a  consequence  of  the  ob¬ 
servance  of  Easter  Day.  The  writer  can  remember  when 
Easter  itself  was  ignored  in  Presbyterian  churches.  But 
when  the  celebration  of  Easter  became  firmly  established, 
the  question  began  to  be  asked :  Is  it  not  a  strange  thing 
for  an  evangelical  Church,  that  puts  the  emphasis  upon 
the  cross,  to  celebrate  the  anniversary  of  the  resurrection 
and  ignore  the  anniversary  of  the  crucifixion  ?  It  was  an 
awkward  question.  And  when  once  asked,  there  could 
be  only  one  logical  answer.  The  recognition  of  Good 
Friday  has  been  to  some  extent  forced  upon  the  churches 
in  those  states  which  had  made  it  a  legal  holiday.  It  is 
better  certainly  to  keep  the  anniversary  as  a  holy  day, 


SWEET  THE  MOMENTS ,  RICH  IN  BLESSING  103 

with  religious  services,  than  as  a  Roman  holiday  given 
over  to  public  amusements.  It  is,  however,  likely  that 
the  propriety  of  recognizing  the  day  in  Presbyterian 
churches  may  be  a  topic  for  discussion  for  years  to  come. 

It  is  also  a  subject  for  discussion,  whether  the  present 
hymn  might  not  well  be  reserved  for  use  on  some  such 
special  occasion,  when  our  feelings  are  moved  by  the 
pathos  of  the  cross.  Is  it  not  perhaps  too  tender  in 
feeling  to  justify  the  familiar  use  it  has  had  in  everyday 
social  services? 

2.  In  the  text,  as  printed  in  The  Hymnal  revised,  there 
is  a  striking  change  when  we  pass  from  the  “  I  ”  of  the 
four  Shirley  verses  to  the  “  we  ”  of  the  Cooke  and  Den¬ 
ton  verse.  Much  has  been  written  as  to  whether  our 
congregational  songs  should  have  the  “  I  ”  and  “  my  ”  of 
an  individual  singer  or  the  “  we  ”  and  “  our  ”  of  the 
congregation  as  a  common  body.  And  this  hymn  suggests 
an  answer.  It  is  as  if  each  singer  came  alone  to  the  cross, 
and  there  laid  low  his  heart,  all  alone  with  Christ.  And 
as  if  all  the  singers  then  arose  and  stood  together  at  the 
cross  in  one  common  outburst  of  praise  and  adoration. 

3.  There  are  few  meaner  things  in  this  world  than 
plagiarism.  Plagiarism  is  the  stealing  of  the  products  of 
another’s  brain,  and  giving  them  forth  as  our  own.  It 
is  good,  therefore,  in  tracing  these  verses  to  the  little 
known  original  of  the  obscure  James  Allen,  to  remember 
that  Shirley  was  quite  innocent  of  plagiarism.  He 
neither  signed  them  nor  claimed  them  as  his  own.  His 
only  ambition  was  to  furnish  his  cousin’s  chapels  with 
good  hymns.  It  is  not  even  possible  to  say  how  many  of 
these  were  written  by  himself. 


X 

ROCK  OF  AGES,  CLEFT  FOR  ME 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me, 

Let  me  hide  myself  in  Thee; 

Let  the  water  and  the  blood, 

From  Thy  riven  side  which  flowed, 

Be  of  sin  the  double  cure, 

Cleanse  me  from  its  guilt  and  power. 

2  Not  the  labors  of  my  hands 
Can  fulfil  Thy  law’s  demands; 

Could  my  zeal  no  respite  know, 

Could  my  tears  for  ever  flow, 

All  for  sin  could  not  atone; 

Thou  must  save,  and  Thou  alone. 

3  Nothing  in  my  hand  I  bring, 

Simply  to  Thy  cross  I  cling; 

Naked,  come  to  Thee  for  dress, 

Helpless,  look  to  Thee  for  grace; 

Foul,  I  to  the  fountain  fly; 

Wash  me,  Saviour,  or  I  die. 

4  While  I  draw  this  fleeting  breath, 

When  my  eyelids  close  in  death, 

When  I  soar  to  worlds  unknown, 

See  Thee  on  Thy  judgment  throne, 

Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me, 

Let  me  hide  myself  in  Thee. 

Rev.  Augustus  M.  Toplady,  in  The  Gospel  Magazine  for  March,  1776 

Note:  The  text  is  that  of  Toplady’s  own  Psalms  and  Hymns  of 
1776,  except  in  the  second  line  of  the  last  verse,  whose  alteration 
is  explained  under  “  Some  Points  for  Discussion.” 


104 


ROCK  OF  AGES,  CLEFT  FOR  ME 


I05 

“  Rock  of  Ages  ”  was  written  by  Augustus  Montague 
Toplady,  one  of  the  converts  of  the  same  Methodist  re¬ 
vival  that  produced  “  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul.”  But 
he  had  lost  his  sympathy  with  Wesley’s  doctrinal  views, 
turned  his  back  on  Methodism,  and  become  a  Church  of 
England  clergyman.  Two  things,  however,  he  had  kept 
in  his  heart  —  the  fervor  of  the  Methodists  and  their 
love  for  songs  that  had  the  glow  of  the  gospel  in  them. 
He  not  only  wrote  hymns  of  his  own  but  he  joined  a 
little  group  of  men  who  were  doing  their  best  to  win  a 
place  for  hymn  singing  in  the  Church  of  England  itself. 


A  NEW  ATTACK  UPON  THE  OLD  PSALM 

SINGING 

In  our  third  study  we  saw  how  young  Isaac  Watts  chal¬ 
lenged  the  old  custom  of  singing  metrical  Psalms,  and 
won  the  hearts  of  the  Independent  congregations  with 
his  own  very  human  hymns.  In  our  fourth  study  we  saw 
how  the  Wesley  brothers  followed  in  the  next  generation 
with  their  gospel  songs,  and  made  these  a  great  power  in 
the  Methodist  Revival. 

With  the  Independents  singing  Watts’s  hymns  and  the 
Methodists  singing  the  Wesleys’,  it  might  seem  that  the 
“  hymn  of  human  composure  ”  had  come  to  its  own  in 
England.  But  not  yet.  The  great  established  Church 
clung  to  the  old  Psalms.  Most  of  its  bishops  and  clergy 
cared  little  for  the  Independents  and  despised  the  Meth¬ 
odists  as  fanatics.  The  thing  they  most  dreaded  in  re¬ 
ligion  was  “  enthusiasm,”  which  they  regarded  as  bad 
form.  As  the  Methodist  singing  became  clamorous,  they 
felt  the  greater  dislike  for  hymns  as  the  particular 
vehicle  of  this  vulgar  “  enthusiasm.”  The  good  and 


I05  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

great  Dr.  Johnson,  a  churchman  of  the  better  sort,  notes 
in  his  diary  that  on  Easter  Day,  1764,  he  gave  a  crown 
to  a  poor  girl  he  met  in  church,  although  he  saw  a  hymn 
book  in  her  hand.  He  was  pluming  himself  on  a  char¬ 
itable  impulse  that  could  even  surmount  the  prejudice 
against  hymn  singers. 

But  enthusiasm  is  a  contagious  thing,  and  even  the 
lethargic  Church  of  England  could  not  escape  it  alto¬ 
gether.  We  have  already  seen  how  Lady  Huntingdon 
succumbed,  and  how,  when  the  doctrinal  split  came  in 
1741,  she  took  charge  of  Whitefield’s  forces,  and  began 
to  stir  up  a  revival  in  the  Church  itself.  The  little  group 
of  clergy  who  shared  Whitefield’s  Calvinistic  views  and 
sympathized  with  his  revival  measures,  were  content  for 
a  while  to  preach  and  work  under  the  great  lady’s  aus¬ 
pices.  But  when  she  became  a  dissenter,  most  of  them 
kept  their  places  in  the  established  Church  and  gradu¬ 
ally  formed  an  Evangelical  or  Low  Church  Party  to  carry 
on  the  revival  within  the  bounds  of  the  Church.  They 
protested  against  being  called  Methodists,  but  for  a 
good  while  they  protested  in  vain.  What  seemed  to 
outsiders  to  give  them  away  was  their  revival 
preaching,  and  especially  their  addiction  to  the  new  and 
strange  practice  of  singing  human  hymns  in  place  of  the 
long  established  Psalm  singing.  For  with  one  exception, 
these  leaders  were  all  agreed  that  evangelical  religion  has 
the  right  to  express  itself  in  evangelical  songs.  In  1753, 
Whitefield  had  made  his  own  hymn  book  for  use  in  the 
revival  services  of  his  London  Tabernacle.  Seven  years 
later  the  Rev.  Martin  Madan  followed  with  another  for 
use  in  his  chapel  at  the  Lock  Hospital.  It  was  a  private 
chapel  and  not  a  parish  church,  or  else  Mr.  Madan  would 
have  got  into  trouble,  just  as  Mr.  Wesley  did  at  Savannah, 


AUTOGRAPH  LINES  FROM  A  SERMON  OF  TOPLADY 


108  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

for  introducing  unauthorized  hymns  into  the  Church 
service. 

To  this  Evangelical  Party  in  the  Church  of  England 
Mr.  Toplady  attached  himself  as  one  of  its  younger 
members.  And  in  1776  he,  too,  printed  a  collection  of 
Psalms  and  Hymns  for  his  Orange  Street  Chapel  in  Lon¬ 
don.  It  was  his  “  Declaration  of  Independence  ”  from 
the  fetters  of  the  old  Psalmody.  It  was  even  more  mem¬ 
orable  as  the  first  hymn  book  in  which  his  own  “  Rock 
of  Ages  ”  appeared  and  thus  began  its  remarkable  career. 
Toplady  wrote  other  hymns  that  have  been  widely  sung. 
But  “  Rock  of  Ages  ”  is  to-day  in  more  church  hymnals 
than  is  any  other  English  hymn.  And  in  the  opinion  of 
many  judges  it  is  the  greatest  hymn  in  the  language. 
Its  warmth  of  feeling  and  fervor  of  devotion,  with  a  cer¬ 
tain  note  of  solemnity  like  the  rhythmic  pealing  of 
deep-toned  bells,  have  made  an  abiding  impression  upon 
millions  of  human  hearts. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

It  is  an  odd  coincidence  that  as  Charles  Wesley  was 
born  in  the  year  in  which  Watts  printed  “  There  is  a  land 
of  pure  delight,”  so  Toplady  was  born  in  the  year  in 
which  the  Wesleys  printed  “  Jesu,  Lover  of  my  soul.” 

He  was  born  in  the  English  village  of  Farnham  on 
November  4,  1740.  His  father,  a  major  in  the  army,  died 
in  the  field  within  a  few  months  of  the  birth  of  the  son, 
who  was  left  to  the  abundant  love  of  the  widow.  He  was 
a  white-faced,  fragile,  neurotic  child,  mentally  and  spir¬ 
itually  so  precocious  as  to  be  abnormal.  He  remarked  in 
his  diary :  “  I  am  now  arrived  at  the  age  of  eleven  years. 
I  praise  God  I  can  remember  no  dreadful  crime:  and  not 


ROCK  OF  AGES,  CLEFT  FOR  ME 


109 

to  me  but  to  the  Lord  be  the  glory.  Amen.  It  is  now 
past  eight  o’clock,  and  now  I  think  fit  to  withdraw,  but 
yet  my  heart  is  so  full  of  divine  and  holy  raptures,  that 
a  sheet  of  paper  could  not  contain  my  writings.”  Self- 
conscious,  proud,  and  passionate,  he  composes  a  daily 
prayer  to  be  kept  from  quarreling  with  his  schoolmates. 


AUGUSTUS  M.  TOPLADY 


At  twelve  he  is  writing  sermons  and  preaching  to  those 
who  will  hear ;  and  his  mother  embroiders  for  him  a 
pulpit  fall.  She  dotes  on  him,  and  is  bringing  him  up, 
the  grandmother  thinks,  to  be  a  scourge  to  her.  His 
uncle  and  aunt  cannot  make  him  out  and  frankly  detest 
him.  These  critical  relatives,  one  by  one,  the  child  pil¬ 
lories  in  his  diary.  Aunt  Betsy,  for  example,  “  is  so 
vastly  quarrelsome;  in  short,  she  is  so  fractious,  and 
captious,  and  insolent,  that  she  is  unfit  for  human  so- 


1 10 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


ciety.”  A  boy  who  fails  to  appear  at  the  hour  appointed 
becomes  “  the  dishonourable  Norreys.”  A  woman  who 
“  said  I  am  a  second  Timothy  ”  fared  better,  though  “  I 
do  not  set  this  down  from  my  vanity.”  At  thirteen  he 
composes  a  farce,  which  he  intends  to  show  to  the  great 
Mr.  Garrick  of  Drury  Lane.  At  fourteen  he  becomes  a 
writer  of  hymns,  and  at  nineteen  publishes  a  volume  of 
them. 

After  his  school  days  in  London,  Toplady  went  with 
his  mother  to  Ireland,  and  entered  Trinity  College,  Dub¬ 
lin.  One  summer  day  in  1756,  at  a  revival  meeting  in 
an  Irish  barn,  he  “  was  brought  nigh  to  God  ”  under  a 
sermon  by  a  Methodist  preacher,  James  Morris.  He  de¬ 
termined  to  prepare  for  the  ministry.  But  he  then  held 
to  the  Arminian  theology  of  Methodism.  When  he  came 
to  study  the  Thirty-nine  Articles  of  the  Church  of  Eng¬ 
land  he  was  surprised  to  find  them  Calvinistic,  and 
thought  he  would  have  to  seek  a  sphere  in  one  of  the 
Arminian  sects.  Further  study  brought  deep  misgiv¬ 
ings,  and  in  great  agitation  of  mind  he  completely 
changed  his  views.  He  became  an  ardent  Calvinist,  and 
as  such  entered  the  ministry  of  the  Church  of  England. 

His  ministry  was  to  be  short.  He  was  curate  of  Blag- 
don,  in  Somerset,  in  1762,  and  of  Farley  Hungerford  two 
years  later ;  then  vicar  of  Harpford  and  Fen  Ottery,  and 
later  of  Broad  Hembury;  three  obscure  villages  of 
Devon,  not  far  from  Exeter.  He  preached  with  great 
nervous  excitement,  his  flaming  spirit  set  in  the  frail 
candlestick  of  a  diseased  body.  The  seeds  of  consump¬ 
tion  developed  —  in  those  days  an  inevitable  doom.  He 
craved  a  larger  opportunity  for  his  last  years.  His 
friends  engaged  the  Huguenot  Chapel  in  Orange  Street, 
London,  where  he  preached  to  great  congregations,  until 


ROCK  OF  AGES,  CLEFT  FOR  ME 


ill 


no  longer  able  to  mount  the  pulpit  steps.  On  August 
ii,  1778,  that  passionate  heart  ceased  to  beat.  His  body 
was  buried  within  the  walls  of  Whitefield’s  Tabernacle  in 
Tottenham  Court  Road. 

Toplady  lived  in  a  time  of  theological  controversy. 
And  when  he  adopted  Calvinistic  views  in  his  ardent  way, 
he  felt  that  he  had  been  delivered  from  a  dark  pit,  in 
which  John  Wesley  dwelt  as  a  sort  of  Jinnee.  In  a  pam¬ 
phlet  of  1769,  The  Church  of  England  vindicated  from 
the  charge  of  Arminianism,  he  tried  to  prove  that  the 
Church  was  Calvinistic.  Henceforward  in  conversation, 
letters,  sermons,  hymns,  tracts,  and  treatises  he  spent 
himself  in  setting  forth  and  defending  the  Calvinistic 
doctrine  of  Election. 

The  actual  quarrel  with  John  Wesley  began  after  Top- 
lady  published  later  in  the  same  year  a  translation  of 
Zanchius  on  Predestination.  Wesley  printed  an  abridg¬ 
ment  of  it  for  his  societies,  with  a  stinging  preface  of  his 
own,  and  at  the  end  an  unfair  summary  professing  to 
be  signed  “  A - T - 

Toplady’s  feelings  were  outraged  by  what  he  called 
“  Mr.  Wesley’s  lying  abridgment  ”  and  “  forging  ”  of  his 
signature.  He  printed  A  Letter  to  the  Rev.  Mr.  John 
Wesley ,  which  in  the  recklessness  of  its  misjudgment  of 
a  good  man,  the  audacity  of  its  unmerited  charges,  and 
the  offensiveness  of  its  language,  has  never,  one  likes 
to  think,  had  a  parallel  in  religious  debate.  It  was  in¬ 
deed  pitiful,  if  only  a  burst  of  sudden  passion,  or  if  it 
stood  alone.  But  it  was  followed  by  More  work  for  Mr. 
John  Wesley ,  an  old  Fox  tarred  and  feathered,  and  by 
a  hounding  of  Wesley’s  name  and  reputation  that  ended 
only  with  death. 

In  his  last  illness  Toplady  had  himself  taken  to  the 


1 1 2 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Orange  Street  Chapel.  Some  one  had  started  a  rumor 
that  he  had  changed  his  views  and  wished  to  converse 
with  Mr.  Wesley.  At  the  end  of  the  sermon  preached  by 
another,  Toplady’s  emaciated  figure  mounted  the  pulpit 
steps.  He  hoped,  he  said,  his  last  hours  “  would  be 
much  better  employed  than  in  conversing  with  such  a 
man.”  Were  he  on  his  death-bed  with  a  pen  in  his  hand, 
he  “  would  not  strike  out  a  single  line  ”  he  had  written 
relative  to  Wesley  and  his  doctrines. 

No  wonder  that  Professor  J.  Ritchie  Smith,  of  Prince-  • 
ton  Seminary,  should  exclaim  in  his  The  Wall  and  the 
Gates,  “  Is  this  the  author  of  Rock  of  Ages  ?  ”  and  should 
cite  Toplady  as  a  historical  illustration  of  the  fact  that 
“  orthodoxy  covers  a  multitude  of  sins  in  our  sight, 
though  it  may  be  itself  the  worst  of  sins.”  The  venera¬ 
tion  that  surrounds  Toplady ’s  name  in  so  many  books  is 
due  to  some  extent  to  party  spirit.  Though  not  a  widely 
read  theologian,  he  was  the  clearest  brain  and  the  recog¬ 
nized  leader  on  the  Calvinistic  side  in  “  a  hot  time,”  and 
his  followers  inevitably  glorified  him.  It  is  best  to 
say  frankly  that  his  combative  side  deserves  the  venera- 
ation  of  no  Christian.  To  seek  some  palliation  of  Top- 
lady’s  offense  in  a  morbid  body  and  diseased  nerves  is 
right  enough.  We  may  try  to  forgive  it,  but  we  cannot, 
if  we  are  to  study  “  Rock  of  Ages,”  forget  it,  for  he  has 
chosen  to  use  the  hymn  as  part  of  his  “  case  ”  against 
Wesley,  just  as  a  lawyer  annexes  an  “  exhibit  ”  to  his 
brief. 

In  the  meantime  the  pure  and  fervid  hymn  is  none  the 
less  the  gift  of  God.  He  is  pleased  to  store  His  gifts  in 
earthen  vessels.  Neither  a  holy  sacrament  nor  a  holy 
hymn  is  spoiled  by  any  lack  of  perfect  whiteness  in  the 
human  hand  through  which  it  comes. 


ROCK  OF  AGES ,  CLEFT  FOR  ME 


113 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

Outside  the  village  of  Burrington  Combe  in  Somerset, 
England,  a  limestone  crag  rises  some  seventy  or  eighty 
feet.  Down  the  center  is  a  deep  fissure,  in  whose  re¬ 
cesses  ferns  grow.  During  July,  1921,  some  English 
newspapers  announced  that  a  pilgrimage  was  being  or¬ 
ganized  to  visit  the  spot,  as  that  in  which  Toplady  com¬ 
posed  “  Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me.”  On  the  Bank 
Holiday  of  August  following,  a  great  company,  estimated 
at  ten  thousand,  made  the  pilgrimage,  and  in  the  natural 
amphitheater  facing  the  crag  joined  in  prayer,  heard 
addresses,  and  sang  the  hymn.  It  was  a  wonderful 
testimonial  to  the  power  of  the  hymn  after  a  hundred 
and  forty-five  years. 

The  odd  feature  of  the  occasion  is  that  no  one  present 
could  have  known  that  Toplady  wrote  the  hymn 
there  or  even  had  the  crag  in  mind  when  he  did  write  it. 
There  is  a  local  tradition,  apparently  not  old  but  care¬ 
fully  fostered,  that  he  was  caught  one  day  by  a  thunder¬ 
storm  in  Burrington  Combe,  took  refuge  in  the  fissure, 
and  there  wrote  the  hymn.  No  evidence  of  the  truth  of 
the  story  has  ever  been  produced.  It  seems  more  likely 
that  the  story  grew  out  of  the  “  cleft  for  me  ”  in  the 
hymn,  rather  than  that  the  hymn  proceeded  from  the 
fissure.  Just  as  in  the  case  of  “  Jesus,  Lover  of  my 
soul,”  the  story  of  the  dove  taking  refuge  in  Charles 
Wesley’s  breast  grew  out  of  the  line,  “  Let  me  to  Thy 
bosom  fly.” 

It  is  true  that  the  crag  is  within  walking  distance  of 
Blagdon  Church,  where  Toplady  was  curate.  But  he 
left  there  in  1764,  and  not  a  line  of  the  hymn  is  known 
to  exist  until  October,  1775  —  eleven  years  afterwards. 


CLEFT  FOR  ME 


ROCK  OF  AGES ,  CLEFT  FOR  ME 


US 

The  present  writer  sees  little  room  for  doubt  that  what 
Toplady  actually  had  before  him  when  he  wrote  the 
hymn  was  a  copy  of  the  Wesleys’  Hymns  on  the  Lord's 
Supper  (1745),  of  which  eleven  editions  had  appeared 
before  the  date  of  the  hymn.  It  was  a  book  Toplady 
would  be  sure  to  examine.  And  on  page  eight  of  the 
prefatory  matter  he  would  find  the  following  passage: 
“  O  Rock  of  Israel,  Rock  of  Salvation,  Rock  struck  and 
cleft  for  me,  let  those  two  Streams  of  Blood  and  Water 
which  once  gushed  out  of  Thy  side,  bring  down  Pardon 
and  Holiness  into  my  soul.  And  let  me  thirst  after  them 
now,  as  if  I  stood  upon  the  Mountain  whence  sprung  this 
Water ;  and  near  the  Cleft  of  that  Rock,  the  Wounds  of 
my  Lord,  whence  gushed  this  sacred  Blood.”  If  anyone 
questions  that  we  have  here  the  source  from  which  Top¬ 
lady  drew  the  theme  and  imagery  of  the  hymn,  he  may 
turn  to  Hymn  XXVII  of  the  same  book,  whose  opening  is, 

“  Rock  of  Israel,  cleft  for  me.” 

It  is  not  doubt  one  is  likely  to  feel,  but  wonder ;  wonder 
that  Toplady  could  appropriate  these  materials  and  yet 
write  of  John  Wesley,  “  I  believe  him  to  be  the  most  ran¬ 
corous  hater  of  the  gospel-system,  that  ever  appeared  in 
this  island.” 

We  get  our  first  glimpse  of  the  hymn  in  The  Gospel 
Magazine  for  October,  1775,  where,  in  an  article  on  “  Life 
a  Journey,”  Toplady  says :  “  Yet,  if  you  fall,  be  humbled ; 
but  do  not  despair.  .  .  .  Look  to  the  blood  of  the 
covenant;  and  say  to  the  Lord,  from  the  depth  of  your 
heart, 

“  Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me, 

Let  me  hide  myself  in  thee! 

Foul,  I  to  the  fountain  fly: 

Wash  me,  Saviour,  or  I  die.” 


n6  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

Whether  the  hymn  was  completely  written  out  then,  we 
shall  never  know. 

After  he  became  editor  of  the  magazine,  Toplady 
printed  in  the  number  for  March,  1776,  a  curious  article 
by  “  J.  F.”  —  aiming  to  show  that  England  could  never 
pay  her  national  debt.  Toplady  appended  a  “  spiritual 
improvement,”  showing  that  sinners  are  in  the  same  case 
as  regards  their  debt  to  the  moral  law.  Reckoning  one 
sin  to  every  second,  “  at  ten  years  old,  each  of  us  is 
chargeable  with  315  millions  and  36  thousand  sins.  At 
twenty,  with  630  millions,  and  720  thousand,”  and  so  on, 
by  decades,  till  the  end  of  life.  “  This  debt  we  can 
never  pay.  But  Christ  has  redeemed  us  from  the  curse 
of  the  Law  and  His  Blood  cleanseth  from  all  sin.  We 
must  bless  God  the  Father  for  electing  us,  God  the  Son 
for  assuming  our  debts,  God  the  Holy  Spirit  for  His  gift 
of  faith  in  Christ.” 

Then  follow  the  four  verses  of  the  hymn.  Unfortu¬ 
nately,  even  in  this  mood  of  exaltation,  Toplady  cannot 
overlook  John  Wesley.  And  he  heads  his  hymn,  “  A  liv¬ 
ing  and  dying  PRAYER  for  the  HOLIEST  BELIEVER 
in  the  World”  Possibly  that  sarcastic  phrase,  “  the 
holiest  believer  in  the  world,”  did  not  refer  to  Wefley  in 
person,  but  to  any  follower  who  thought  he  exemplified 
Wesley’s  doctrine  that  entire  holiness  is  attainable  while 
in  the  flesh.  Even  a  perfectionist,  perhaps  Toplady 
means,  is  none  too  holy  to  use  the  words  of  this  hymn. 

Toplady,  as  has  been  said,  included  “  Rock  of  Ages  ” 
in  his  collection  published  that  same  year.  It  does  not 
seem  to  have  attracted  special  attention,  and  during  the 
thirty  years  following  it  is  not  found  in  many  hymn 
books.  But  such  postponement  is  a  commonplace  in  the 
history  of  hymns.  The  turn  of  this  hymn  came  early 


ROCK  OF  AGES,  CLEFT  FOR  ME 


117 

in  the  nineteenth  century,  and  it  gradually  advanced  to 
the  first  place  as  regards  the  proportion  of  church 
hymnals  that  found  room  for  it. 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  The  Scriptures  from  which  the  imagery  is  taken,  in 
the  passage  of  the  Wesleys’  Hymns  on  the  Lord’s  Supper 
and  in  the  first  verse  of  Toplady’s  hymn,  seem  to  be  the 
cleft  rock  of  Ex.  33  122  and  the  smitten  rock  of  Ex.  17  :6, 
and  these  as  interpreted  by  I  Cor.  10:4,  “  And  that  Rock 
was  Christ,”  and  by  the  pierced  side  of  Jesus,  with  the 
outflow  of  water  and  blood.  Dr.  Oliver  Wendell  Holmes 
said  it  was  these  material  images  that  made  the  hymn  so 
impressive.  Are  the  images  confused  in  the  hymn  ?  The 
Rev.  William  Henry  Havergal  thought  so,  and  tried  to 
make  two  hymns  of  it;  one  on  the  Rock  as  the  Shelter, 
the  other  on  the  Rock  as  the  Source  of  the  water  of  life. 
But  no  one  seemed  to  care  for  his  hymns. 

The  beautiful  phrase,  “  Rock  of  Ages,”  is  also  Scrip¬ 
tural.  Toplady  took  it  from  the  reading,  in  the  margin 
of  the  King  James  Version,  of  Isa.  26:4. 

2.  In  printing  the  hymn  in  his  Psalms  and  Hymns, 
Toplady  made  some  changes  in  it.  The  one  for  which 
we  are  most  grateful  is  in  the  new  title  of  the  hymn, 
which  leaves  Mr.  Wesley  out.  It  reads  “  A  Prayer,  living 
and  dying.”  He  now  began  the  fourth  verse  with 
“  while  ”  in  place  of  the  hissing  “  whilst.”  And  he  put 
“  When  I  soar  to  worlds  unknown  ”  for  “  When  I  soar 
through  tracts  unknown.”  Is  this  change  an  improve¬ 
ment? 

The  Hymnal  revised  follows  this  text,  except  in  read¬ 
ing  “  When  my  eylids  close  in  death  ”  in  place  of  “  When 


n8  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

my  eye-strings  break  in  death.”  It  was  a  mistaken 
notion  that  in  dying  the  muscles  or  tendons  of  the  eye 
snapped.  Shakespeare  uses  the  same  phrase  in  his 
Cymbeline.  The  new  line  has  been  substituted  by  gen¬ 
eral  consent.  As  actual  fact  is  in  question,  would  not 
“  When  mine  eyes  are  closed  in  death  ”  be  still  nearer 
the  truth? 

In  1815  the  Rev.  Thomas  Cotterill  of  Sheffield  con¬ 
densed  the  four  verses  into  three  for  a  hymn  book  of  his 
own.  For  many  years  this  three-verse  form  of  the  hymn 
was  the  only  one  known  in  Episcopalian  and  Methodist 
hymn  books.  But  the  full  form  of  the  hymn  has  now 
prevailed. 

3.  Of  the  tunes  for  this  hymn  in  The  Hymnal  revised, 
that  by  Redhead,  to  which  he  gave  no  name,  is  most 
popular  in  England.  It  was  Number  76  in  his  book  of 
Church  Hymn  Tunes ,  1853,  and  is  generally  known  as 
“  Redhead  Number  76.”  In  this  country  Thomas  Hast¬ 
ings’  “  Toplady  ”  is  more  popular.  He  wrote  it  for  a 
hymn  book  called  Spiritual  Songs  that  came  out  as  a 
series  of  little  pamphlets,  beginning  in  1830,  and  was  de¬ 
signed  to  combat  the  introduction  of  revival  and  ballad 
tunes  into  Presbyterian  churches  by  offering  some  that 
were  more  reverent  and  yet  simple  and  easy  to  sing. 
The  tune  “Reliance,”  Number  322  in  The  Hymnal  re¬ 
vised,  was  also  composed  for  this  hymn  at  the  request 
of  the  committee  in  charge  of  the  original  edition.  In 
revising  the  book  it  was  thought  best  to  set  other  words 
to  this  tune.  Its  composer  was  an  English  musician, 
then  living  in  Denver. 


XI 


GOD  OF  OUR  FATHERS,  WHOSE 
ALMIGHTY  HAND 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  God  of  our  fathers,  whose  almighty  hand 
Leads  forth  in  beauty  all  the  starry  band 

Of  shining  worlds  in  splendor  through  the  skies, 
Our  grateful  songs  before  Thy  throne  arise. 

2  Thy  love  Divine  hath  led  us  in  the  past; 

In  this  free  land  by  Thee  our  lot  is  cast; 

Be  Thou  our  Ruler,  Guardian,  Guide,  and  Stay; 
Thy  word  our  law,  Thy  paths  our  chosen  way. 

3  From  war’s  alarms,  from  deadly  pestilence, 

Be  Thy  strong  arm  our  ever  sure  defence; 

Thy  true  religion  in  our  hearts  increase, 

Thy  bounteous  goodness  nourish  us  in  peace. 

4  Refresh  Thy  people  on  their  toilsome  way, 

Lead  us  from  night  to  never-ending  day; 

Fill  all  our  lives  with  love  and  grace  Divine, 

And  glory,  laud,  and  praise  be  ever  Thine. 

Rev.  Daniel  C.  Roberts,  1876 

Note:  The  text  is  that  printed  in  the  Report  of  the  Protestant 
Episcopal  Hymnal  Commission  to  the  General  Convention  of  1892. 

This  Fourth  of  July  hymn  was  written  in  1876  by  Dr. 
Daniel  C.  Roberts,  a  New  England  clergyman,  for  the 
centennial  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  It  seems 

119 


120 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


at  first  a  far  cry  from  this  hymn  to  those  of  the  eight¬ 
eenth  century  revival  in  old  England  which  we  have 
been  studying  together ;  but  there  is,  after  all,  a  real  con¬ 
nection  between  the  political  events  the  new  hymn  cele¬ 
brates  and  the  great  revival  out  of  which  the  old  ones 
came. 

The  fact  is  that  in  England,  as  the  fourth  day  of  July, 
1776,  approached,  most  of  the  people  were  a  great  deal 
more  excited  about  the  prospect  of  war  with  the  American 
colonies  than  about  the  progress  of  the  revival ;  and  none 
more  concerned  than  were  the  leaders  of  the  revival, 
which  had  made  new  bonds  between  the  old  country 
and  the  colonies.  Whitefield  had  gone  over  to  them 
again  and  again  with  his  flaming  gospel,  and  in  one  of 
them  his  worn-out  body  had  lain  at  rest  since  1770;  but 
a  host  of  his  American  converts  remained.  Both  of  the 
Wesleys  also  had  lived  in  the  colonies,  and  the  American 
Methodists  now  numbered  some  thousands. 

John  Wesley’s  sympathies  were  with  the  Americans  at 
first.  Then  his  sense  of  loyalty  changed  his  mind,  and  he 
printed  A  calm  Address  to  our  American  Colonies.  In 
this  he  appropriated,  with  or  without  permission,  the  con¬ 
tents  of  a  pamphlet,  Taxation  no  tyranny ,  by  that  same 
Dr.  Johnson  who  gave  a  coin  to  the  girl  with  a  hymn 
book  in  her  hand.  It  was  then  that  the  redoubtable  Mr. 
Toplady  put  forth  his  An  old  Fox  tarr’d  and  feather’d. 
Toplady  was  earnestly  opposed  to  making  war  against 
the  Americans,  but  it  was  not  in  their  behalf  that  he 
published  his  pamphlet.  His  intention,  as  he  said,  was, 
first,  to  show  Wesley’s  dishonesty  in  stealing  Dr.  John¬ 
son’s  materials,  “  and,  second,  to  raise  a  little  skin  by 
giving  the  Fox  a  gentle  flogging  as  a  turn-coat.”  That 
was  in  October,  1775.  A  few  months  later  Mr.  Toplady 


GOD  OF  OUR  FATHERS ,  WHOSE  ALMIGHTY  HAND  12 1 

printed  something  pleasanter  to  remember  —  his  “  Rock 
of  Ages,  cleft  for  me.”  That  was  in  March,  1776.  It  is, 
of  course,  nothing  more  than  an  interesting  coincidence 
that  the  centennial  year  of  the  Declaration  of  Independ¬ 
ence  in  which  Dr.  Roberts’  hymn  was  written  was  also 
the  centennial  year  of  “  Rock  of  Ages.”  And  in  view  of 
its  great  influence  in  both  England  and  America,  Top- 
lady’s  hymn  might  well  have  had  a  little  centennial  cele¬ 
bration  all  its  own. 

A  CENTENNIAL  HYMN 

When  the  present  writer  was  gathering  materials  for 
The  Hymnal ,  published  in  1895,  he  became  familiar  with 
the  hymn  “  God  of  our  fathers,”  by  the  Rev.  Daniel  C. 
Roberts,  set  to  George  William  Warren’s  music  in  that 
musical  edition  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Hymnal 
of  1892,  commonly  called  “  Tucker’s  Hymnal.”  Mr. 
Warren  was  a  warm  personal  friend.  Dr.  Roberts 
showed  himself  friendly.  Permission  to  use  hymn  and 
tune  was  readily  given.  And  so  the  hymn  got  into  The 
Hymnal . 

An  unfamiliar  hymn  in  a  church  hymnal  is  always  a 
venture,  especially  one  with  long  lines.  Would  this  one 
“  take  ”  ?  It  soon  became  plain  that  it  was  being  used 
in  patriotic  services;  and  at  the  end  of  1900  the  present 
writer,  having  in  mind  a  study  such  as  this,  so  long  de¬ 
ferred,  asked  the  author  for  some  account  of  the  hymri 
and  for  a  copy  of  it  by  his  own  hand. 

Dr.  Roberts  very  kindly  furnished  the  requested  auto¬ 
graph,  which  is  here  reproduced  in  facsimile;  and  this 
is  what  he  wrote  from  Concord,  New  Hampshire,  on 
January  8,  1901 : 


122 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

“  The  hymn  was  written  in  1876  for  a  celebration  of 
the  Centennial  ‘  Fourth  ’  of  July,  and  sung  at  Brandon, 
Vermont,  to  the  tune  called  ‘  Russian  Hymn,’  set  to 
‘  Rise,  crowned  with  light  ’  in  our  Hymnals.  When  our 
General  Convention  appointed  a  Commission  to  revise  the 
Hymnal,  I  sent  it,  without  my  name,  promising  to  send 
the  name  if  the  hymn  were  accepted.  It  was  accepted, 
and  printed  anonymously  in  the  report  of  the  Commis¬ 
sion.  Before  the  Hymnal  was  printed,  the  Revd  Dr. 
Tucker,  late  of  Troy,  editor  of  our  best  musical  Hymnal, 
and  Mr.  Geo.  Wm.  Warren,  organist  of  S.  Thomas’ 
Church,  New  York,  were  appointed  a  committee  to 
choose  a  hymn  for  the  centennial  celebration  of  the 
adoption  of  the  Constitution.  They  selected  this  hymn, 
then  anonymous,  and,  wanting  a  tune,  Mr.  Warren  com¬ 
posed  a  tune  to  which  it  has  since  been  set  in  the 
‘  Tucker  ’  Hymnal.  Subsequently  it  was  selected  as  the 
‘  Recessional  ’  at  the  ‘  Bi-Centenary  ’  of  Trinity  Church, 
New  York  City. 

“  My  little  hymn  has  thus  had  very  flattering  official 
recognition.  But  that  which  would  really  gladden  my 
heart,  popular  recognition,  it  has  not  received.  Mr.  War¬ 
ren’s  tune  is  majestic.  Mr.  Parker’s  in  Hutchins’ 
Hymnal  rather  academic:  the  kind  of  tune  appealing  to 
the  ‘  Demos  ’  has  not  appeared.  I  should  be  more  than 
gratified  if  the  ‘  people  ’  should  take  it  up.  In  fact,  I  con¬ 
fess,  that  after  its  favorable  official  reception,  I  had  a 
little  hope  which  took  the  form  of  an  ambition,  that  it 
might  be  so.  But  that  has  not  happened.  Recognition 
from  you  is  very  grateful  to  me.  It  had  never  occurred 
to  me  to  think  of  it  as  of  value,  until  the  incidents  above 
related  befell,  and  then  I  allowed  myself  to  dream  a 
little.” 


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124 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


MR.  WARREN’S  “NATIONAL  HYMN” 

Dr.  Roberts’  letter,  with  its  frank  human  touch,  is 
very  engaging,  but  he  did  not  understand  how  heavy  the 
odds  are  against  any  new  hymn  getting  a  real  hearing, 
even  after  it  has  edged  its  way  into  our  over-full  church 
hymnals.  If  he  were  now  alive  he  would  see  that  this 
hymn  has  won  its  present  favor  very  largely  through  the 
appeal  of  the  music  Mr.  Warren  composed  for  it.  And 
that  makes  it  proper  that  we  should  also  give  Mr.  Warren 
his  share  of  the  credit. 

George  William  Warren  was  born  in  the  city  of  Albany 
in  1828  and  was  educated  at  Racine  College.  Although 
he  became  Professor  of  Music  at  Columbia  University, 
his  musical  education  was  due  to  his  own  indefatigable 
efforts:  he  was  self-taught.  Early  in  life  he  composed  a 
number  of  piano  pieces,  and  the  royalties  from  one  of 
them,  “  Tam  o’  Shanter,”  brought  him  quite  a  little  in¬ 
come  every  year  to  the  end  of  his  life.  He  was  an  organ¬ 
ist  and  choirmaster  from  the  age  of  eighteen,  at  Albany, 
Brooklyn,  and  for  more  than  thirty  years  at  St.  Thomas’ 
in  New  York.  These  were  the  years  of  his  greatest 
power  and  reputation ;  and  the  music  of  St.  Thomas’ 
became  a  popular  feature  of  New  York  life,  drawing 
crowds  to  the  church.  His  tunes,  mostly  composed  for 
St.  Thomas’  choir,  belonged  rather  to  the  older  parlor- 
music  school  than  to  the  later  “  Anglican  ”  school.  They 
were  spontaneous  and  melodious,  and  were  full  of  feel¬ 
ing,  as  the  composer  himself  was. 

He  was  a  man  of  high-strung  temperament,  of  deep 
affections,  a  sincere  manner,  and  rather  blunt  speech. 
He  died  of  apoplexy  on  March  17,  1902,  and  was  buried 
from  the  church  he  loved  with  a  solemn  service  in  which 


GOD  OF  OUR  FATHERS,  WHOSE  ALMIGHTY  HAND  125 

there  was  not  a  note  of  music,  even  of  the  organ.  It  was 
intended  to  suggest  that  there  was  no  one  any  longer  to 
lead  the  music  of  St.  Thomas’;  and  it  was  in  contrast 
with  an  earlier  commemoration  of  Mr.  Warren’s  twenty- 
five  years  of  service,  at  which  all  the  music  was  of  his 
composition  and  his  tune  to  Dr.  Roberts’  hymn  was  sung 
as  the  processional. 

Mr.  Warren  contributed  two  tunes  to  The  Hymnal  of 
1895,  one  of  which,  “Log  College,”  is  retained  in  The 
Hymnal  revised.  It  was  quite  characteristic  of  him  that 
he  refused  to  receive  any  compensation  for  this  tune, 
preferring  that  it  should  appear  as  a  mark  of  friendship 
for  the  writer  of  the  words  and  the  editor  of  the  book. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  CENTENNIAL  HYMN 

Dr.  Roberts’  letter  of  1901  went  on  to  say: 

“  My  personal  history  is  of  little  account.  I  was  born 
in  Bridge  Hampton,  Long  Island,  N.  Y.,  Nov.  5th  1841. 
Entered  Kenyon  College,  Gambier,  Ohio,  in  1857.  En¬ 
listed  as  a  private  in  1862.  Was  ordained  Deacon  in 
1865,  Priest  in  1866.  Served  as  Rector  of  Christ  Church, 
Montpelier,  Vermont ;  S.  John’s,  Lowell,  Mass. ;  S. 
Thomas’s,  Brandon,  Vermont,  and  for  the  last  twenty- 
three  years  have  been  Vicar  of  S.  Paul’s  Church,  Con¬ 
cord,  N.  H.,  of  which  parish  the  Bishop  of  New  Hamp¬ 
shire  is  titular  Rector.  I  remain  a  country  Parson, 
known  only  within  my  own  small  world.” 

This  is  the  brief  life  record  of  a  man  efficient  in  his 
parishes  and  trusted  in  the  wider  councils  of  his  denom¬ 
ination.  He  had  more  recognition  than  he  has  admitted : 
as  a  Mason  and  a  Civil  War  veteran;  as  President  of 
the  State  Historical  Society  while  in  New  Hampshire, 


126 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


and  President  of  the  State  Normal  School  in  Vermont. 
He  was  apparently  a  good,  manly,  warm-hearted,  clear¬ 
headed,  hard-working  clergyman :  one  of  a  type  of  which 
no  Church  can  have  too  many  examples.  Some  occa¬ 
sional  verses  and  carols  reveal  another  turn  of  his  mind 
and  hand.  He  would  have  been  the  last  to  claim  that 
they  revealed  him  as  a  poet.  Dr.  Roberts  died  “  on  the 
Vigil  of  All  Saints  Day  ”  of  1907 :  so  the  denominational 
newspapers  reported.  Some  of  their  readers  might  have 
preferred  a  simpler  record  of  the  date. 

The  regiment  in  which  Dr.  Roberts  enlisted  in  1862 
was  the  Eighty-fourth  Regiment  of  Ohio  Volunteers. 
Like  so  many  of  those  who  survived  the  great  adventure 
of  the  Civil  War,  he  was  always  afterward  at  heart  a 
veteran  soldier.  Indeed  he  reentered  military  service  as 
chaplain  in  the  National  Guard  of  New  Hampshire.  It 
may  therefore  be  fitting  that  this  brief  record  of  his  life 
should  close  with  the  last  verse  of  his  own  word  picture 
of  a  soldier’s  day,  which  he  printed  as  War  Etchings: 

Now  silence  broods  with  shadowy  wings, 

The  watchful  sentry’s  footfall  rings, 

The  soldier  sleeps  beneath  the  sky, 

While  night  winds  murmur  lullaby. 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  When  we  attain  the  perfection  to  which  Mr.  Wesley 
summoned  us,  to  the  great  indignation  of  Mr.  Toplady, 
we  shall  no  doubt  be  able  to  write  perfect  hymns.  Dr. 
Roberts  had  not  yet  attained  perfection  in  the  art  of 
writing  verse,  and  his  hymn  is  not  free  from  faults. 

That  it  begins  with  the  same  phrase  as  Kipling’s  “  Re¬ 
cessional  ”  does,  is  a  bit  unfortunate,  but  no  fault  of 


DR.  DANIEL  C.  ROBERTS 


i28  studies  of  familiar  hymns 

Dr.  Roberts,  since  Kipling’s  fine  hymn  was  yet  unwritten. 
It  is,  however,  a  question  whether  the  opening  lines,  with 
their  majestic  figure  of  the  Almighty  leading  forth  the 
processional  of  starry  worlds,  are  quite  lived  up  to  in 
the  lines  that  follow.  It  may  be  interesting  to  compare 
the  hymn  in  this  respect  with  Mr.  Chadwick’s  “  Eternal 
Ruler  of  the  ceaseless  round  ”  (No.  351  in  The  Hymnal 
revised ),  which  opens  with  the  same  figure.  And  then,  if 
we  are  to  sing  a  number  of  verses  to  the  same  tune,  it  is 
plain  that  the  accents  or  stresses  of  the  voice  should  be 
distributed  uniformly,  so  that  the  emphasis  in  the  music 
and  in  the  words  should  match  throughout.  Do  any  of 
these  lines  fail  in  that  respect,  and,  if  so,  which  lines? 

The  hymn  is  a  metrical  prayer,  not  very  poetical  and 
hardly  more  eloquent  than  many  an  extemporized  prayer 
one  might  hear  from  the  pulpit  on  patriotic  occasions. 
But  it  is  devout  and  dignified  and  serviceable.  It  has 
the  heart  of  the  matter  in  it.  Mr.  Warren’s  trumpets 
call  to  the  congregation,  and  the  people  respond  gladly, 
and  not  without  a  thrill  “  for  God  and  country.”  Per¬ 
haps  we  can  hardly  think  of  the  hymn  apart  from  Mr. 
Warren’s  music.  But  then  we  do  not  have  to. 

2.  Of  all  the  hymns  written  for  the  centennial  of 
American  independence,  this  is  the  only  one  that  appears 
to  have  found  a  permanent  place  in  our  hymn  books. 
Attempts  have  been  made  to  get  a  hearing  for  Whittier’s 
“  Centennial  Hymn,”  beginning, 

Our  fathers’  God !  from  out  whose  hand 

The  centuries  fall  like  grains  of  sand. 

But  his  verses  are  so  true  to  the  particular  occasion 
for  which  they  were  written  that  they  are  not  easily 
adapted  to  a  more  general  use. 


GOD  OF  OUR  FATHERS ,  WHOSE  ALMIGHTY  HAND  129 

3.  The  great  World  War  made  unexpected  demands 
upon  our  limited  stock  of  patriotic  songs.  And  it  may 
be  a  question  still  whether  we  have  a  full  supply  of  good 
hymns  for  the  Fourth  of  July.  If  more  are  needed,  it 
might  be  worthwhile  for  anyone  who  has  a  copy  of  the 
old  Presbyterian  Hymnal  of  1874  to  take  a  look  at  the 
“  Hymn  for  the  Fourth  of  July,  1832,”  by  the  author  of 
“  The  Star-Spangled  Banner,”  which  begins, 

Before  the  Lord  we  bow  — 

The  God  who  reigns  above, 

And  rules  the  world  below, 

Boundless  in  power  and  love. 

Meantime  it  is  satisfactory  to  have  Dr.  Roberts’  hymn  to 
commemorate  the  Centennial,  alongside  of  Dr.  Bacon’s 
“  O  God,  beneath  Thy  guiding  hand,”  commemorating 
the  Pilgrim  Fathers,  and  Dr.  Holmes’  “  O  Lord  of  hosts, 
Almighty  King!  ”  commemorating  the  Civil  War. 


XII 

HOW  SWEET  THE  NAME  OF  JESUS  SOUNDS 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 


1  How  sweet  the  Name  of  Jesus  sounds 

In  a  believer’s  ear! 

It  soothes  his  sorrows,  heals  his  wounds, 

And  drives  away  his  fear. 

2  It  makes  the  wounded  spirit  whole, 

And  calms  the  troubled  breast; 

’Tis  Manna  to  the  hungry  soul, 

And  to  the  weary  Rest. 

3  Dear  Name!  the  Rock  on  which  I  build, 

My  Shield  and  Hiding-place, 

My  never-failing  Treasury,  filled 
With  boundless  stores  of  grace; 

4  Jesus,  my  Shepherd,  Brother,  Friend, 

My  Prophet,  Priest,  and  King, 

My  Lord,  my  Life,  my  Way,  my  End, 

Accept  the  praise  I  bring. 

5  Weak  is  the  effort  of  my  heart, 

And  cold  my  warmest  thought; 

But  when  I  see  Thee  as  Thou  art, 

I’ll  praise  Thee  as  I  ought. 

6  Till  then  I  would  Thy  love  proclaim 

With  every  fleeting  breath; 

And  may  the  music  of  Thy  Name 
Refresh  my  soul  in  death. 

Rev.  John  Newton,  1779 

Note:  The  text  is  taken  from  the  first  edition  of  Newton’s  Olney 
Hymns,  1779,  with  the  omission  of  the  original  fourth  verse  and 
the  change  of  “Husband”  to  “Brother”  in  the  fourth  verse  as 
here  numbered. 


130 


HOW  SWEET  THE  NAME  OF  JESUS  SOUNDS  13 1 

When  “  good  Lady  Huntingdon  ”  seceded  from  the 
Church  of  England,  a  number  of  the  clergy  who  had 
helped  her  work  felt  it  their  duty  to  remain  in  the  old 
Church,  although  they  knew  very  well  that  they  were 
not  wanted.  They  formed  themselves  into  that  Evan¬ 
gelical,  or,  as  we  usually  call  it,  Low  Church  Party  of 
which  we  heard  in  connection  with  Mr.  Toplady.  These 
men  were  Calvinistic  in  their  theology,  and  claimed  their 
right  to  preach  the  gospel  as  they  believed  it,  and  also 
to  sing  evangelical  hymns  in  church  as  well  as  the  met¬ 
rical  Psalms  bound  up  with  the  prayer  books.  With  not 
much  of  a  party  organization,  these  Evangelicals  tried 
to  carry  on  the  revival,  in  London  when  they  could,  but 
mostly  in  the  isolation  of  their  country  parishes. 


“ OLNEY  HYMNS” 

The  story  of  the  hymn  whose  title  heads  this  chapter 
takes  us  into  one  of  those  country  parishes,  Olney,  on  the 
bank  of  the  river  Ouse,  in  the  county  of  Buckinghamshire. 
The  little  town  consisted  mostly,  and  does  yet,  of  one 
street,  widening  into  a  market  place;  the  most  conspicu¬ 
ous  object  being  the  parish  church,  with  its  ungraceful 
spire.  The  town  was  not  pretty,  nor  the  people  well-to-do 
or  well  educated.  Many  pilgrims  go  to  Olney  nowadays 
for  the  poet  Cowper’s  sake.  But  what  first  carried  its 
name  far  and  wide  in  England  and  America  was  nothing 
other  than  a  hymn  book  written  there  and  called  Olney 
Hymns. 

The  pulpit  of  the  parish  church  was  filled  by  a  bluff 
and  manly  Evangelical,  John  Newton,  whose  looks  and 
ways  brought  a  whiff  of  the  sea.  He  had  been  a  sailor, 
and  in  1764  was  ordained  and  appointed  a  curate  of  the 
parish,  the  vicar  being  of  the  absentee  sort. 


JOHN  NEWTON 


HOW  SWEET  THE  NAME  OF  JESUS  SOUNDS  133 

Newton’s  preaching  began  to  fill  the  church,  but  he 
gave  special  attention  to  young  people’s  work  and  se¬ 
cured  permission  to  use  Lord  Dartmouth’s  empty  man¬ 
sion,  the  Great  House.  Here  of  a  Thursday  afternoon 
he  gathered  the  children,  not  for  the  usual  catechism  ex¬ 
ercise,  but  to  explain  the  Scriptures  “  in  their  own  little 
way.”  In  the  evenings  he  had  meetings  for  older  people, 
with  extempore  prayers  and  exhortation;  and  he  intro¬ 
duced  the  singing  of  hymns.  All  of  which  may  seem 
commonplace  now;  but  it  was  quite  enough  then  and 
there  to  stamp  the  curate  a  “  Methodist,”  as  the  hard- 
and-fast  Churchman  dubbed  all  Evangelicals.  And  one 
at  least  of  Newton’s  neighboring  rectors  refused  to  speak 
to  him  when  they  passed. 

It  was  for  these  revival  meetings  at  the  Great  House 
that  Newton  began  to  write  hymns  of  his  own,  not  ven¬ 
turing  as  yet  to  displace  the  metrical  Psalms  from  the 
parish  church  services.  And  that  is  the  reason  most  of 
his  hymns  are  so  confined  to  personal  spiritual  experi¬ 
ences.  They  have  the  anxious  tone  that  a  pastor’s 
preaching  takes  in  time  of  revival.  He  wrote  only  one 
great  song  of  praise,  the  still  familiar  “  Glorious  things 
of  thee  are  spoken.” 

Newton  was  not  a  poet  and  did  not  pretend  to  be  one. 
“  There  is,”  he  said,  “  a  stile  and  manner  suited  to  the 
composition  of  hymns,  which  may  be  more  successfully, 
or  at  least  more  easily  attained  by  a  versifier,  than  by  a 
poet.”  He  was  writing  for  plain  people,  and  made  his 
hymns  so  simple  that  these  could  follow  and  understand. 
In  all  this  he  took  his  cue  from  Dr.  Watts.  Newton  had 
a  ready  pen,  some  imagination,  deep  feeling,  a  knowledge 
of  Scripture,  and  an  urgent  motive ;  something  else,  also, 
that  we  may  best  call  the  power  of  virility.  And  once 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


134 

in  a  while,  as  in  this  hymn  and  in  “  Quiet,  Lord,  my  fro- 
ward  heart,”  he  climbed  nearer  to  the  heights  where  poets 
walk. 

At  one  time  Newton  was  writing  a  hymn  every  week 
for  his  prayer  meeting,  where  no  doubt  they  were  given 
out  verse  by  verse  or  even  by  couplets.  By  1779  they 
mounted  up  to  two  hundred  and  eighty,  and  that  year  he 
gathered  them  with  sixty-eight  more  by  his  friend  and 
neighbor,  William  Cowper,  and  published  them  at 
London  as 

OLNEY  HYMNS, 

IN 

THREE  BOOKS. 

Book  I.  On  select  Texts  of  Scripture. 

Book  II.  On  occasional  Subjects. 

Book  III.  On  the  Progress  and  Changes 
of  the  Spiritual  Life. 

None  of  the  hymns  is  dated.  “  How  sweet  the  Name  of 
Jesus  sounds  ”  is  No.  57  of  “  Book  I.  On  select  Texts  of 
Scripture.”  Its  text  is  Solomon’s  Song,  chapter  1 13  ;  and 
its  title  is  “  The  name  of  JESUS.” 

Olney  Hymns  is  best  understood  as  a  revival  hymn 
book.  In  its  day  it  had  the  same  welcome  and  popularity 
that  Gospel  Hymns  of  the  Moody  and  Sankey  revival  had 
in  ours.  But  the  books  cannot  be  compared,  since  it  was 
the  music  of  Gospel  Hymns  that  won  the  day.  Olney 
Hymns  had  no  tunes  at  all,  but  its  hymns  exactly  met 
the  need  of  the  Evangelical  preachers  and  their  converts. 
It  was  the  Evangelical  theology  put  into  rhyme  for  sing¬ 
ing,  but  even  more  for  reading  and  remembering.  It 
became  an  Evangelical  handbook,  printed  over  and  over 
in  England  and  America,  and  it  exerted  an  immense  in- 


HOW  SWEET  THE  NAME  OF  JESUS  SOUNDS  135 

fluence.  The  simple  verses  exercised  over  many  minds 
the  fascination  that  nursery  rhymes  have  for  children. 
The  Roman  Catholic  hymn  writer,  Faber,  speaks  of  their 
acting  like  a  spell  upon  him  for  many  years  in  his  Pro¬ 
testant  youth  and  coming  back  unbidden  through  his 
Catholic  years.  And  now  that  the  career  of  Olney  Hymns 
is  run,  a  few  of  its  choicer  strains  survive  among  the 
permanent  treasures  of  the  Church. 

JOHN  NEWTON’S  ROMANTIC  CAREER 

The  curate  of  Olney  was  a  marked  man ;  not  only  be¬ 
cause  he  was  an  Evangelical,  but  because  he  was  “  a  man 
with  a  past.”  He  was  one  of  those  whom  people  point 
to  in  the  street  with  a  nudge  and  a  “  Do  you  know  about 
him?”  This  was  due  to  the  startling  disclosure  of  his 
experiences  he  published  just  after  coming  to  Olney  as 
“  The  authentic  Narrative  ”  of  his  life.  It  was  a  record 
of  debauchery,  and  it  would  be  hard  for  one  man  to 
paint  an  enemy  as  black  as  Newton  painted  himself 
in  that  book. 

He  was  born  in  London  in  July,  1725,  of  a  godly 
mother  who  lived  long  enough  to  make  a  religious  im¬ 
pression  upon  his  childish  heart.  His  father  was  captain 
of  a  merchantman  in  the  Mediterranean  trade ;  a  severe, 
silent  man,  of  whom  the  boy  was  rather  afraid.  At  the 
age  of  eleven  he  was  taken  from  school,  and  went  to  sea 
with  his  father  on  half  a  dozen  voyages.  The  boy  plainly 
was  hot-blooded,  willful,  and  “  irregular  ”  in  his  conduct. 
But  he  was  far  from  passing  these  years  without 
“  troublesome  convictions  ”  and  religious  experiences. 
“  I  think  I  took  up  and  laid  aside  a  religious  profession 
three  or  four  times  before  I  was  sixteen  years  of  age ;  but 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


136 

all  this  while  my  heart  was  insincere.  I  often  saw  a 
necessity  of  religion  as  a  means  of  escaping  hell;  but  I 
loved  sin,  and  was  unwilling  to  forsake  it.”  His  “  last 
reform  ”  was  the  most  remarkable ;  a  year  or  more  of 
prayer  and  Scripture-reading  covering  “  the  greatest  part 
of  every  day.”  As  far  as  shipboard  conditions  would  per¬ 
mit,  he  became  an  ascetic,  avoiding  conversation,  eating 
no  meat,  and  “  bemoaning  his  former  miscarriages.” 

It  may  all  have  been  mistaken,  but  it  does  not  sound 
“  insincere,”  as  Newton  called  it.  Surely  to  persevere 
in  such  a  course  in  face  of  a  jeering  crew  and  of  the 
temptations  of  southern  ports  shows  a  certain  strength  of 
character.  It  left  Newton  dull  and  disheartened,  and  an 
easy  victim  to  some  skeptical  literature  that  fell  in  his 
way.  Before  long  he  had  lost  all  sense  of  religious  real¬ 
ity.  He  became  an  utter  skeptic,  “  an  infidel,”  as  he 
said ;  and  with  “  the  way  prepared  for  all  that  is  to 
follow.” 

Returning  from  a  voyage  to  Venice  in  1743,  he  was 
impressed  on  board  a  warship,  but  through  his  father’s 
influence  rated  a  midshipman.  He  deserted,  was  caught, 
brought  back  to  Plymouth  in  chains,  publicly  flogged,  and 
degraded  to  the  rank  of  a  common  seaman.  His  disgrace, 
which  he  thought  undeserved,  embittered  and  hardened 
him.  Quite  reckless  now,  he  plunged,  according  to  his 
own  testimony,  into  a  career  of  degrading  debauchery  and 
moral  shamelessness,  and,  “  like  one  infected  with  a 
pestilence,  was  capable  of  spreading  a  taint  wherever  I 
went.” 

He  effected  an  exchange  from  the  warship,  glad  to  be 
rid  of  him,  into  a  slave  ship  bound  for  the  coast  of 
Africa :  his  thought  being  that  there  he  could  “  be  as 
abandoned  as  I  pleased,  without  any  control.”  He  en- 


HOW  SWEET  THE  NAME  OF  JESUS  SOUNDS  137 

tered  the  service  of  a  slave  trader  in  one  of  the  Plantane 
Islands,  was  treated  with  abominable  cruelty  and  neglect, 
and  went  down  into  a  depth  of  physical  degradation 
where  even  most  of  the  Negro  slaves  refused  any  dealings 
with  him. 

In  the  end  he  got  word  to  his  father,  and  was  rescued 
by  a  vessel  commissioned  to  look  out  for  him.  On  the 
way  home  he  encountered  a  violent  storm  and  was  almost 
lost.  In  the  stress  a  review  of  his  past  life  brought  him 
to  shame,  and  from  shame  to  prayer.  He  started  out 
deliberately  to  rediscover  the  grounds  of  faith  in  the 
Gospels  he  had  become  accustomed  to  laugh  over;  and 
step  by  step  he  went  forward  toward  the  reality  and  as¬ 
surance  of  faith.  He  reached  England  in  May,  1748,  a 
Christian  by  conviction,  though  still  feeling  his  way. 

Through  all  these  wander-years  Newton  carried  two 
talismans,  a  boy’s  memory  of  his  mother  and  a  man’s 
love  for  a  young  girl  he  had  left  behind  him  in  England. 
On  his  return  the  girl  married  him  —  with  a  heroic  trust, 
one  would  think.  In  seeking  a  livelihood  Newton’s  new 
convictions  did  not  prevent  his  entering  the  slave  trade. 
The  moral  standards  of  the  time  had  not  yet  condemned 
it.  He  made  two  voyages  to  Africa  and  the  West  Indies, 
and  only  an  attack  of  apoplexy  prevented  a  third. 

He  was  appointed  tide  surveyor  at  Liverpool  in  1755, 
and  held  the  post  several  years.  There  he  came  under 
the  direct  influence  of  Whitefield  and  the  Evangelical 
Revival.  He  carried  on  his  studies  (even  at  his  lowest  he 
had  never  wholly  foregone  them),  began  to  preach  oc¬ 
casionally  as  a  lay  evangelist,  and  felt  the  call  to  enter 
the  ministry.  He  wavered  between  the  established  and 
dissenting  churches,  and  chose  the  established.  But  he 
could  not  find  in  all  England  a  bishop  willing  to  ordain 


138  studies  of  familiar  hymns 

him,  until  Lord  Dartmouth  came  to  his  rescue.  Dart¬ 
mouth  was  Secretary  of  State  in  charge  of  America, 
friendly  to  the  colonies,  and  after  him  our  Dartmouth 
College  was  named.  He  was  at  the  same  time  an  Evan¬ 
gelical  and  a  liberal  helper  of  Lady  Huntingdon.  He 
made  new  interest  in  high  quarters  and  secured  Newton’s 
ordination  on  agreeing  to  appoint  him  to  the  curacy  of 
Olney.  Newton  “  was  too  much  in  earnest  about  religion 
to  be  readily  entrusted  with  a  commission  to  teach  it, 


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A  PASSAGE  FROM  AN  AUTOGRAPH  LETTER 


except  as  a  matter  of  favour  to  a  great  man :  ”  —  so  Sir 
George  Otto  Trevelyan  remarks  in  his  delightful  book, 
The  American  Revolution.  It  is  possible  also  that 
Newton’s  record  seemed  very  “  irregular  ”  to  the  bishops. 

In  his  own  heart  that  record  was  indelible.  He  be¬ 
came  a  faithful  pastor,  at  Olney  for  nearly  sixteen  years, 
and  at  St.  Mary  Woolnoth,  London,  for  twenty-eight 
more.*  He  became  a  leader  of  the  Evangelical  Party, 
loved  and  trusted.  But  in  his  own  heart,  and  on  his  own 

*  “  My  race  at  Olney  is  nearly  finished ;  I  am  about  to  form  a 
connection  for  life  with  one  Mary  Woolnoth,  a  respected  London 
saint  in  Lombard  Street.”  (Newton  to  Bull,  Sept.  21,  1779.) 


HOW  SWEET  THE  NAME  OF  JESUS  SOUNDS  139 

tongue,  to  the  end  of  his  life,  he  was  always  “  the  old 
African  blasphemer.”  Was  he  really  called  upon,  we 
sometimes  ask,  to  publish  that  Narrative  and  continually 
to  blacken  a  good  name  fairly  won?  He  thought  so. 
He  was  the  living  proof  that  God  could  save  even  to  the 
uttermost.  And  he  thought  he  was  called  upon  to  give 
his  testimony  in  plain  terms  and  at  any  cost. 

Into  his  hymns  also  Newton’s  experiences  are  written 
deep.  One  day,  when  his  memory  was  almost  gone,  he 
said,  “  I  can  never  forget  two  things :  first,  that  I  was  a 
great  sinner,  and,  second,  that  Jesus  is  a  great  Saviour.” 
The  first  memory  explains  an  undertone  of  sadness  in  the 
hymns :  the  second  explains  why  he  wrote  “  How  sweet 
the  Name  of  Jesus  sounds.” 

Newton  lived  to  be  eighty-two,  and  died  December 
21,  1807.  He  was  buried  beneath  his  church  of  St.  Mary 
Woolnoth,  and  a  tablet  was  placed  on  the  church  wall 
with  a  touching  inscription  prepared  by  himself :  — 

JOHN  NEWTON 
CLERK , 

ONCE  AN  INFIDEL  AND  LIBERTINE, 

A  SERVANT  OF  SLAVES  IN  AFRICA, 

WAS, 

BY  THE  RICH  MERCY  OF  OUR  LORD  AND  SAVIOUR 

JESUS  CHRIST, 

PRESERVED,  RESTORED,  PARDONED, 

AND  APPOINTED  TO  PREACH  THE  FAITH 
HE  HAD  LONG  LABOURED  TO  DESTROY. 

HE  MINISTERED 

NEAR  XVI.  YEARS  AS  CURATE  AND  VICAR 
OF  OLNEY  IN  BUCKS, 

AND  XXVIII.  AS  RECTOR 
OF  THESE  UNITED  PARISHES. 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


140 

In  1893  the  excavations  for  the  London  underground 
railway  disturbed  the  church  vaults;  and  Newton’s  re¬ 
mains  were  removed  and  reburied  in  the  churchyard  at 
Olney. 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  The  Daily  Service  book  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
Church  has  an  office  for  the  “  Feast  of  the  Most  Holy 
Name  of  Jesus.”  It  includes  two  parts  of  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  of  Latin  hymns,  “  Jesu,  dulcis  memoria.” 
The  Rev.  Samuel  W.  Duffield,  a  Presbyterian  lover  of 
Latin  hymns,  thought  it  probable  that  these  verses  of 
Newton  on  the  Name  of  Jesus  are  “  an  echo  or  para¬ 
phrase  ”  of  the  Latin  original.  One  wishes  he  had  said 
why  he  thought  so.  Eighteenth  century  Evangelicals 
were  not  much  interested  in  Latin  hymns.  But  in  this 
matter  we  have  the  materials  at  hand  on  which  to  base 
our  own  conclusion.  Good  translations  of  both  parts  of 
the  Latin  hymn  are  in  The  Hymnal  revised:  “  Jesus,  the 
very  thought  of  Thee  ”  (No.  545)  and  “  O  Jesus,  King 
most  wonderful  ”  (No.  144).  Is  there  any  similarity  be¬ 
tween  these  and  Newton’s  hymn? 

2.  As  originally  written,  “  How  sweet  the  Name  of 
Jesus  sounds  ”  had  seven  verses.  The  weakest  of  these 
is  omitted  from  The  Hymnal  revised ;  the  original  fourth 
verse.  It  ran, 

“  By  thee  my  pray’rs  acceptance  gain, 

Altho’  with  sin  defil’d: 

Satan  accuses  me  in  vain, 

And  I  am  own’d  a  child.” 

Is  the  hymn  better  without  this  verse,  or  should  it  be 
restored  ? 


HOW  SWEET  THE  NAME  OF  JESUS  SOUNDS  141 

3.  There  is  also  a  change  of  one  word  from  the  original 
text  of  the  first  line  of  the  present  fourth  verse,  which 
read, 

“Jesus!  My  Shepherd,  Husband,  Friend.” 

We  all  dislike  such  changes  from  what  an  author  wrote. 
But  if  men  are  to  go  to  church  at  all,  how  can  they  ad¬ 
dress  Christ  as  their  husband?  Was  it  not  the  Church 
rather  than  the  individual  Christian  that  was  described 
as  the  Bride  of  Christ? 

4.  In  singing  the  first  verse  we  have  to  pronounce 
“  wounds  ”  in  such  a  way  that  the  rhyme  with  “  sounds  ” 
may  be  preserved.  It  is  no  great  hardship,  as  Shakspeare, 
Marlowe,  and  Pope  did  the  same  thing  habitually.  In 
other  connections  it  may  be  best  to  conform  to  recent 
usage  by  pronouncing  the  word  as  woond. 


XIII 


GOD  MOVES  IN  A  MYSTERIOUS  WAY 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way 

His  wonders  to  perform; 

He  plants  His  footsteps  in  the  sea, 

And  rides  upon  the  storm. 

2  Deep  in  unfathomable  mines 

Of  never-failing  skill 
He  treasures  up  His  bright  designs, 

And  works  His  sovereign  will. 

3  Ye  fearful  saints,  fresh  courage  take; 

The  clouds  ye  so  much  dread 
Are  big  with  mercy,  and  shall  break 
In  blessings  on  your  head. 

4  Judge  not  the  Lord  by  feeble  sense, 

But  trust  Him  for  His  grace; 

Behind  a  frowning  providence 
He  hides  a  smiling  face. 

5  His  purposes  will  ripen  fast, 

Unfolding  every  hour; 

The  bud  may  have  a  bitter  taste, 

But  sweet  will  be  the  flower. 

6  Blind  unbelief  is  sure  to  err, 

And  scan  His  work  in  vain; 

God  is  His  own  Interpreter, 

And  He  will  make  it  plain. 

William  Cowper,  1774 

Note:  The  text  is  taken  from  John  Newton’s  Twenty-six  Letters 
on  religious  subjects,  London,  1774:  from  which  book  the  hymn 
passed  into  Olney  Hymns  of  1779  without  change. 


142 


GOD  MOVES  IN  A  MYSTERIOUS  WAY 


143 


The  names  of  John  Newton,  curate  of  Olney,  and  his 
neighbor,  William  Cowper,  poet  and  author  of  this  hymn, 
join  together  as  naturally  as  if  they  were  partners  in  a 
firm  of  “  Newton  and  Cowper.”  Their  lives  were  knit  in 
one  of  the  historic  friendships.  And  they  were  indeed 
literary  partners  as  joint  authors  of  Olney  Hymns ,  the 
famous  hymn  book  of  the  Evangelical  Party  in  the 
Church  of  England.  Newton  was  the  senior  partner,  and 
it  was  only  after  the  dissolution  of  the  firm  that  the 
junior  partner  became  famous. 


HOW  THE  POET  CAME  TO  OLNEY 

William  Cowper  (he  pronounced  it  Cooper)  was  born 
in  the  rectory  of  Berkhampstead  in  November,  1731. 
Left  motherless  when  only  six,  he  was  sent  to  boarding 
school,  and  never  forgot  what  he  endured  there  from  a 
big  bully.  He  was  taken  away  on  account  of  eye  trouble, 
and  at  the  age  of  ten  placed  in  the  Westminster  School 
at  London.  He  said  afterwards  that  he  left  school  as 
ignorant  of  religion  as  the  satchel  at  his  back,  but  in  that 
he  was  very  like  many  other  boys.  He  was  articled 
to  an  attorney  in  whose  office  he  idled  away 
“  three  misspent  years.”  At  the  age  of  twenty-one  he 
entered  the  Temple  as  a  regular  student  of  law ;  not  be¬ 
cause  he  had  any  drawing  to  that  profession,  but  to  please 
his  father.  He  came  of  a  legal  family,  his  father  being 
brother  of  a  judge  and  nephew  of  a  lord  chancellor.  He 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1754. 

The  young  lawyer  made  no  attempt  to  practice.  He 
made  his  office  a  gathering  place  of  young  wits.  He 
kept  up  his  classics,  began  to  write  verse,  and  sought 
gayety.  He  fell  in  love,  first  with  his  cousin  Theodora, 


144 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


whose  father  interposed,  and  again  with  a  girl  of  Green¬ 
wich  ;  but  his  ardor  cooled.  If  his  life  seems  idle,  it  was 
perhaps  busy  in  trying  to  forget  himself.  For  he  was 
already  in  the  grip  of  the  saddest  of  human  ailments, 
brain  disease.  As  soon  as  he  began  to  live  alone  in  the 
Temple,  it  showed  itself.  Gradually  he  lapsed  into  dread¬ 
ful  depression.  “  Day  and  night  I  was  upon  the  rack, 
lying  down  in  horror  and  rising  up  in  despair.” 

After  a  year  of  it  he  taught  himself  to  pray,  and  com¬ 
posed  a  little  liturgy.  On  recovering  his  spirits  he  threw 
the  liturgy  into  the  fire  and  relapsed  into  careless  ways. 
Meantime  he  was  using  up  the  little  money  he  had.  His 
prospects  at  the  bar  were  so  hopeless  that  in  his  thirty- 
second  year  a  relative  got  him  an  appointment  to  a  clerk¬ 
ship  in  the  House  of  Lords.  Some  difficulties  arose,  and 
the  dread  of  having  to  stand  a  public  examination  so 
wrought  upon  him  that  he  lost  his  reason  and  made  sev¬ 
eral  attempts  to  kill  himself. 

These  left  behind  an  unutterable  anguish  and  the  firm 
conviction  that  he  was  sentenced  already  to  eternal 
damnation;  as  he  wrote, 

Damned  below  Judas;  more  abhorred  than  he  was, 

Who  for  a  few  pence  sold  his  holy  Master: 

and  so  through  those  dreadful  lines  in  which  he  envies 
the  fate  of  the  dead  consigned  to  perdition,  while  he, 
fed  with  judgment,  is  buried  above  ground  in  a  fleshly 
tomb.  Visions  and  voices  haunted  him;  an  awful  dark¬ 
ness  fell ;  heavy  blows  of  some  great  hammer  beat  upon 
the  brain;  body  and  soul  writhed  in  pain.  Cowper  was 
insane.  There  was  nothing  to  do  but  to  send  him  to  an 
asylum  at  St.  Albans. 

After  eight  months  of  despair  the  light  began  to  glim- 


r 


1 46  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

mer  during  a  visit  of  his  brother.  Deliriums  and  delu¬ 
sions  weakened,  and  he  caught  glimpses  of  God’s  mercy. 
Opening  the  Bible  at  Rom.  3:25  one  day,  “  Immediately 
I  received  strength  to  believe,  and  the  full  beams  of  the 
Sun  of  Righteousness  shone  upon  me.”  In  that  inward 
radiance  he  was  content  to  spend  a  year  of  convalescence 
at  St.  Albans. 

When  Cowper  left  the  asylum  and  took  the  lodgings 
at  Huntingdon  his  brother  had  provided,  he  needed  surely 
the  inward  comfort  of  his  new  evangelical  faith.  For 
outward  things  were  pretty  forlorn.  He  was  thirty-three ; 
he  had  failed  in  his  profession,  was  dependent  upon,  his 
relatives,  was  separated  from  all  his  friendships,  and 
was,  to  put  it  gently,  an  invalid.  Happily  he  found  new 
friends  in  the  Rev.  Mr.  Unwin  and  his  family.  They 
agreed  to  take  Cowper  into  their  cheerful  home,  where 
he  lived  contentedly  with  them  until  Mr.  Unwin’s  sudden 
death  in  1767.  It  is  interesting  to  note  in  passing  Cow- 
per’s  references  to  the  family  custom  of  gathering  to  sing 
out  of  the  new  hymn  book  of  the  Rev.  Martin 
Madan,  one  of  the  Evangelical  leaders ;  because  they 
show  one  of  the  ways  in  which  the  new  Evangelical 
hymns  were  insinuating  themselves  into  Church  of  Eng¬ 
land  households  to  supplement  the  metrical  Psalms  they 
were  expected  to  use  at  church. 

After  Unwin’s  death  there  happened  one  of  those  seem¬ 
ingly  casual  incidents  that  change  the  course  of  men’s 
lives.  It  was  nothing  more  than  a  call  of  condolence 
from  the  Rev.  John  Newton,  curate  of  Olney.  Cowper 
had  made  up  his  mind  to  continue  living  with  Mrs.  Un¬ 
win,  “  whose  behavior  to  me  has  been  that  of  a  mother 
to  a  son.”  And  now  both  were  so  much  drawn  to  New¬ 
ton  that  they  decided  to  move  to  Olney  for  the  sake  of 


GOD  MOVES  IN  A  MYSTERIOUS  WAY 


147 

being  under  his  ministry.  At  their  request  he  engaged 
for  them  a  house  in  the  market  place  of  that  town,  then 
called  “  Orchard  Side  ”  and  now  kept  up  as  the  Cowper 
and  Newton  Museum. 

THE  POET’S  SHARE  IN  “  OLNEY  HYMNS  ” 

Only  an  orchard  lay  between  the  gardens  of  Newton’s 
vicarage  and  the  house  he  chose  for  Cowper.  They  made 
an  opening  in  the  vicarage  wall ;  they  wore  a  path  across 
the  orchard,  and  they  joined  their  hearts  and  lives  in 


THE  COWPER  AND  NEWTON  MUSEUM,  OLNEY 

an  inseparable  friendship.  Newton  thoroughly  appreci¬ 
ated  Cowper,  loved  him  tenderly,  and  no  doubt  in  his 
own  way  tried  to  protect  that  sensitive  nature  against 
its  own  infirmity.  Naturally  he  saw  the  importance  of 
keeping  Cowper’s  mind  occupied,  but  he  would  not  have 
been  the  fervent  Evangelical  he  was  if  he  had  not  made 
his  friend’s  gift  contribute  to  the  work  that  absorbed  his 
own  energies.  He  engaged  Cowper  in  visiting  the  sick 
and  dying,  persuaded  him  to  lead  the  extempore  prayers 
at  the  evening  meetings,  and  to  write  hymns  to  be  sung 


148  studies  of  familiar  hymns 

there  after  the  sermon.  It  was  for  the  occasion  of  re¬ 
moving  those  meetings  to  the  larger  room  of  the  Great 
House  that  Cowper  furnished  his  “  Jesus,  where’er  Thy 
people  meet.” 

Other  hymns  express  plainly  Cowper’s  own  experi¬ 
ences  ;  now  cheerful,  as  in  “  Sometimes  a  Light  sur¬ 
prises  ” ;  now  retrospective,  as  he  recalls  that  sudden 
radiance  upon  the  text  in  Romans, 

The  Spirit  breathes  upon  the  word, 

And  brings  the  truth  to  sight; 

now  regretful  of  the  fading  of  the  joyfulness  of  those 
latter  days  at  St.  Albans, 

Where  is  the  blessedness  I  knew 
When  first  I  saw  the  Lord? 

and  now  in  the  depths  of  despondency, 

My  former  hopes  are  dead, 

My  terror  now  begins; 

I  feel,  alas!  that  I  am  dead 
In  trespasses  and  sins. 

For  again  the  shadows  were  closing  in.  It  may  be  that 
the  revival  atmosphere  at  Olney  was  too  highly  charged 
for  Cowper.  It  may  be  that  Newton  was  unwise  in 
asking  for  those  agitating  public  appearances  at  the 
Great  House.  It  may  be  merely  that  Cowper’s  disease 
was  approaching  an  inevitable  outbreak.  Whatever  the 
occasion  may  have  been,  the  visions  and  voices  came 
back ;  black  melancholy  settled  down.  The  voices  told 
Cowper  that  God  demanded  his  life  in  sacrifice,  and  once 
more  he  attempted  suicide. 

With  that  catastrophe  the  hymn  we  are  now  studying 
is  closely  connected.  It  was  the  last,  and  has  been  gen- 


GOD  MOVES  IN  A  MYSTERIOUS  WAY 


149 

erally  regarded  as  the  outcome  of  the  attempt  at  suicide. 
That  was  in  October,  1773.  Since  The  Hymnal  was 
first  printed,  some  new  evidence  as  to  its  date  has  come 
to  light.  The  writer  is  at  present  disposed  to  think  it 
was  written  toward  the  end  of  1772  or  very  early  in  1773. 
This  date  gives  added  probability  to  the  substantial  ac¬ 
curacy  of  the  statement  in  the  Rev.  Samuel  Greatheed’s 
funeral  sermon  that  Cowper  “  conceived  some  presenti¬ 
ment  ”  of  the  attack  of  insanity,  and  that  “  as  it  drew 
near,  during  a  solitary  walk  in  the  fields,”  he  composed 
this  hymn  “  so  expressive  of  that  faith  and  hope  which  he 
attained  so  long  as  he  possessed  himself.”  Newton  tes¬ 
tifies  that  even  in  the  midst  of  his  distress  and  fore¬ 
boding,  and  up  to  the  date  of  the  “  terrible  dream  ”  that 
broke  his  heart  early  in  1773,  Cowper  often  expressed 
his  submission  to  God’s  sovereignty,  and  said  that  God 
was  trying  him  only  for  the  purpose  of  bringing  about 
some  good  thing. 

Cowper’s  attack  put  an  end  to  his  hymn-writing.  And 
it  is  only  with  Cowper  the  hymn  writer  we  have  here  to 
deal.  He  was  to  recover  from  this  attack  and  to  spend 
years  of  comparative  peace  of  mind  and  of  poetic  achieve¬ 
ment  before  the  last  onset  of  insanity  ending  only  with 
his  death  in  1800.  Cowper  was  over  fifty  years  of  age 
when  he  published  his  first  volume  of  poems,  and  one 
likes  to  think  of  the  fame  he  won  as  some  compensation 
for  the  sorrows  he  endured.  It  was  perhaps  out  of  his 
sorrows  he  wrought  that  tender  grace  of  his  verse  which 
keeps  it  still  alive  when  the  work  of  his  contemporary 
poets  lies  so  dead  and  forgotten.  In  all  his  serious  poetry 
Cowper  aimed  to  be  the  “  poet  of  Christianity.”  And  it 
was  the  Christianity  of  the  Evangelical  Revival ;  Chris¬ 
tianity  as  accepted  and  taught  by  the  Evangelical  Party 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


150 

in  the  Church  of  England.  His  poems  have  indeed  (quite 
recently)  been  described  as  “  Methodism  in  verse.” 

Cowper’s  hymns,  with  very  few  exceptions,  were  first 
put  into  print  by  John  Newton.  This  particular  one  he 
printed  in  his  Twenty-six  Letters  on  religious  subjects 
in  1774.  It  was  copied  into  The  Gospel  Magazine  for 
July  of  the  same  year.  In  that  year  also  it  began  its 
career  in  the  hymn  books,  being  included  in  the  “  Col¬ 
lection  ”  of  the  Rev.  Mr.  Conyers,  another  of  the  Evan¬ 
gelical  Party.  Its  place  in  the  affections  of  the  Church 
it  has  never  lost. 

The  hymn  appeared  again  in  Olney  Hymns  of  1779, 
with  all  the  others  Cowper  had  written  before  the  attack 
of  1773.  Newton  explains  the  situation  in  a  preface. 
It  is  odd  that  so  many  readers  of  books  always  skip  the 
preface,  generally  the  most  human  part  of  a  book. 
Newton’s  is  quite  touching.  “  The  whole  number  [of 
hymns]  were  composed  by  two  persons  only.  The  orig¬ 
inal  design  would  not  admit  of  any  other  association.” 
The  book  “  was  intended  as  a  monument,  to  perpetuate 
the  remembrance  of  an  intimate  and  endeared  friendship. 
With  this  pleasing  view  I  entered  upon  my  part,  which 
would  have  been  much  smaller  than  it  is,  and  the  book 
would  have  appeared  much  sooner,  and  in  a  very  different 
form,  if  the  wise,  though  mysterious  providence  of  God, 
had  not  seen  fit  to  cross  my  wishes.  We  had  not  pro¬ 
ceeded  far  upon  our  proposed  plan,  before  my  dear 
friend  was  prevented,  by  a  long  and  affecting  indisposi¬ 
tion,  from  affording  me  any  further  assistance.  My  grief 
and  disappointment  were  great ;  I  hung  my  harp  upon  the 
willows,  and  for  some  time  thought  myself  determined 
to  proceed  no  further  without  him.  Yet  my  mind  was 
afterwards  led  to  assume  the  service.  My  progress  in 


GOD  MOVES  IN  A  MYSTERIOUS  WAY  151 

it,  amidst  a  variety  of  other  engagements,  has  been  slow, 
yet  in  a  course  of  years  the  hymns  amounted  to  a  consid¬ 
erable  number.  And  my  deference  to  the  judgment  and 
desires  of  others,  has  at  length  overcome  the  reluctance 
I  long  felt  to  see  them  in  print,  while  I  had  so  few  of  my 
friend’s  hymns  to  insert  in  the  collection.” 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  When  the  earlier  series  of  these  studies  was  gathered 
into  a  book,  a  reviewer  of  it  began  by  saying,  “No  great 
poet  has  ever  written  a  hymn.”  His  remark  suggests 
several  interesting  topics  for  discussion.  (1)  Is  there 
any  more  ground  for  expecting  a  great  poet  to  write  a 
hymn,  simply  because  poems  and  hymns  are  both  in 
verse,  than  there  is  for  expecting  a  great  novelist  to  write 
a  sermon,  simply  because  novels  and  sermons  are  both 
in  prose?  (2)  Is  it  not  probable  that  most  great  poets 
would  be  glad  to  write  a  great  hymn  ?  Poets  like  recog¬ 
nition  and  crave  immortality.  Is  not  the  vision  of  multi¬ 
tudes  singing  their  words  for  years  and  perhaps  for  cen¬ 
turies  likely  to  appeal  to  them?  (3)  Are  all  great  poets 
able  to  write  great  hymns?  Some  of  them  cannot  even 
write  a  good  song.  But  to  write  a  good  hymn  requires 
much  more  than  a  lyrical  gift.  When  Dr.  Jowett  appealed 
to  Lord  Tennyson  to  write  “  a  few  hymns  in  a  high 
strain,”  that  great  poet  replied  by  saying  that  “  to  write  a 
good  hymn  was  the  most  difficult  thing  in  the  world.” 
(4)  But  when  all  is  said,  some  great  and  many  eminent 
poets  have  in  fact  written  hymns.  Among  English  poets 
the  names  of  Ben  Jonson,  Milton,  Wordsworth,  Scott, 
Tennyson,  and  Kipling,  come  to  mind  at  once;  and  on  this 
side  of  the  water  those  of  Emerson,  Longfellow,  Whittier, 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


152 

Lowell,  and  Holmes.  Some  have  written  whole  books  of 
hymns :  Bryant  in  this  country,  and  in  England  not  only 
Cowper  but  the  present  poet  laureate,  Dr.  Bridges,  who 
has  even  compiled  a  parish  hymn  book. 

2.  It  would  be  a  mistake  to  infer  that  because  all  of 
Cowper’s  sixty-eight  Olney  hymns  were  written  by  a 
poet  they  are  all  equally  good.  They  are  all  spiritual 
and  refined,  and  quite  a  number  have  proved  useful. 
Some  others  seem  like  taskwork,  and  were  perhaps  writ¬ 
ten  at  Newton’s  request,  to  follow  particular  sermons  of 
his  in  the  Great  House.  The  most  famous  of  them  is 
“  There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood,”  in  great  favor 
among  the  older  Evangelicals.  Now  it  has  become  the 
fashion  to  criticize  the  imagery  of  its  first  verse  as  dis¬ 
tasteful  and  not  correctly  interpreting  Scripture. 

Many  would  select  as  Cowper’s  best  hymns,  besides  the 
one  we  are  studying: 

“  Hark,  my  soul,  it  is  the  Lord !  ” 

“  0  for  a  closer  walk  with  God  ” 

“  Sometimes  a  Light  surprises  ” 

“  Jesus,  where’er  Thy  people  meet  ” 

with  (for  private  use) 

“  Far  from  the  world,  O  Lord,  I  flee.” 

3.  In  Olney  Hymns,  “  God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way  ” 
is  Number  XV  of  the  third  “  Book.”  Its  title  as  there 
given  is, 

“  C.  Light  shining  out  of  darkness.” 

The  “  C  ”  stands  for  Cowper’s  authorship,  and  the  rest 
stands  just  as  appropriately  for  his  own  experience.  The 
text  in  The  Hymnal  revised  is  printed  without  change. 
Professor  John  E.  B.  Mayor  lately  found  a  commonplace 


GOD  MOVES  IN  A  MYSTERIOUS  WAY 


153 

book  apparently  in  the  handwriting  of  Cowper’s  first 
cousin,  Maria,  who  married  another  cousin,  Major  Wil¬ 
liam  Cowper.  It  contains  copies  of  letters  and  verses  of 
Cowper  and  the  fifth  verse  of  this  hymn  ends : 

The  bud  may  have  a  bitter  taste, 

But  wait  to  smell  the  flower. 

Of  the  two  readings,  which  is  the  better? 


XIV 

ALL  HAIL  THE  POWER  OF  JESUS’  NAME 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  All  hail  the  power  of  Jesus’  Name! 

Let  angels  prostrate  fall; 

Bring  forth  the  royal  diadem, 

And  crown  Him  Lord  of  all. 

2  Crown  Him,  ye  morning  stars  of  light, 

Who  fixed  this  floating  ball; 

Now  hail  the  strength  of  Israel’s  might, 

And  crown  Him  Lord  of  all. 

3  Crown  Him,  ye  martyrs  of  your  God 

Who  from  His  altar  call; 

Extol  the  Stem  of  Jesse’s  rod, 

And  crown  Him  Lord  of  all. 

4  Ye  seed  of  Israel’s  chosen  race, 

Ye  ransomed  of  the  fall, 

Hail  Him  who  saves  you  by  His  grace, 

And  crown  Him  Lord  of  all. 

5  Sinners,  whose  love  can  ne’er  forget 

The  wormwood  and  the  gall, 

Go,  spread  your  trophies  at  His  feet, 

And  crown  Him  Lord  of  all. 

6  Let  every  kindred,  every  tribe, 

On  this  terrestrial  ball, 

To  Him  all  majesty  ascribe, 

And  crown  Him  Lord  of  all. 


ALL  HAIL  THE  POWER  OF  JESUS’  NAME 


155 

7  O  that  with  yonder  sacred  throng 
We  at  His  feet  may  fall; 

We’ll  join  the  everlasting  song, 

And  crown  Him  Lord  of  all. 

Rev.  Edward  Perronet,  1779-80:  verse  1,  line  4  altered,  verse 
6  recast,  verse  7  added  by  Rev.  John  Rippon,  1787 

Note:  The  text  of  the  hymn  found  in  modern  hymnals  is  based 
upon  the  altered  form  which  Dr.  John  Rippon  gave  it  in  his  Baptist 
Selection  of  Hymns  from  the  best  Authors  published  in  1787.  The 
text  from  The  Hymnal  revised,  as  given  above,  is  an  attempt  to 
embody  as  much  of  the  original  text  as  seemed  practicable  without 
causing  confusion  in  congregations  used  to  Rippon’s  arrangement. 

As  the  original  text  is  hard  to  come  upon,  it  may  be  convenient 
to  have  it  here  as  printed  by  Perronet  himself  in  his  Occasional 
Verses ,  moral  and  sacred,  of  1785. 

ON  THE  RESURRECTION. 

I 

ALL  hail  the  power  of  JESU’s  name! 

Let  Angels  prostrate  fall; 

Bring  forth  the  royal  diadem, 

To  crown  Him  LORD  of  All. 

II 

Let  high-born  Seraphs  tune  the  lyre, 

And,  as  they  tune  it,  fall 

Before  His  face  who  tunes  their  choir, 

And  crown  Him  LORD  of  All. 

m 

Crown  Him,  ye  morning  stars  of  light, 

Who  fix’d  this  floating  ball; 

Now  hail  the  strength  of  ISRAEL’S  might, 

And  crown  Him  LORD  of  All. 

IV 

Crown  Him,  ye  martyrs  of  your  GOD, 

Who  from  His  ALTAR  call ; 

Extol  the  stem  of  JESSE’s  rod, 

And  crown  Him  LORD  of  All. 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


IS6 


v 

Ye  seed  of  ISRAEL’S  chosen  race, 

Ye  ransom’d  of  the  fall, 

Hail  Him  who  saves  you  by  His  grace, 

And  crown  Him  LORD  of  All. 

VI 

Hail  Him,  ye  heirs  of  DAVID’s  line, 

Whom  David  LORD  did  call; 

The  GOD  incarnate,  man  DIVINE; 

And  crown  Him  LORD  of  All. 

VII 

SINNERS !  whose  love  can  ne’er  forget 
The  WORMWOOD  and  the  GALL, 

Go  —  spread  your  trophies  at  His  feet, 

And  crown  Him  LORD  of  All. 

VIII 

Let  every  tribe,  and  every  tongue, 

That  bound  creation’s  call, 

Now  shout  in  universal  song, 

THE  CROWNED  LORD  OF  ALL! 

If  one  had  a  hymn  or  even  a  tune  to  contribute  to  the 
common  stock  in  the  later  years  of  the  Evangelical  Re¬ 
vival,  he  sent  it  in  to  The  Gospel  Magazine,  which  had 
become  the  organ  of  the  Calvinists.  (It  was  there  that 
Toplady  in  1776  printed  his  “Rock  of  Ages.”)  But  it 
was  not  quite  the  thing  to  sign  your  name  to  your  hymn. 
You  gave  a  pen  name,  or  perhaps  none. 

The  Magazine  for  November,  1779,  contained  a  tune 
engraved  in  copperplate,  to  which  was  set  a  verse 
beginning 

“  All  hail  the  Pow’r  of  Jesu’s  Name.” 

One  verse  and  no  more.  And  not  a  sign  as  to  who  com- 


ALL  HAIL  THE  POWER  OF  JESUS’  NAME 


1S7 

posed  the  tune  or  wrote  the  words.  We  know  now  that  the 
composer  was  William  Shrubsole,  a  young  man  of  nine¬ 
teen  who  had  been  a  choir  boy  at  the  cathedral  at  Can¬ 
terbury,  and  at  the  time  was  in  London  as  a  chapel 
organist.  Shrubsole’s  tune  at  once  attracted  attention. 
That  would  naturally  lead  to  inquiries  for  the  remainder 
of  the  hymn.  And  in  the  April  number  of  1780  the  whole 
hymn  appeared  in  eight  verses,  with  a  footnote  referring 
back  to  the  tune,  but  without  any  clue  as  to  the  author. 

WHO  WROTE  THE  HYMN? 

The  editor  of  the  Magazine  must  have  been  asked  that 
question.  If  he  knew,  he  did  not  publish  his  knowledge, 
and  the  authorship  of  the  hymn  remained  a  good  deal  of 
a  puzzle  for  more  than  sixty  years.  It  may  be  interest¬ 
ing  now  to  arrange  the  pieces  of  the  puzzle. 

(1)  In  1785  a  little  book  appeared  in  London  as  Oc¬ 
casional  Verses,  moral  and  sacred .  Published  for  the 
instruction  and  amusement  of  the  candidly  serious  and 
religious.  These  productions,  the  preface  says,  “  were 
not  originally  intended  for  public  view,  but  occasionally 
shewn  to  a  handful  of  friends  ” :  one  of  whom  has  per¬ 
suaded  the  author  “  to  admit  of  their  being  made  public  ” 
by  his  hands  as  “  editor.” 

Among  these  verses,  at  page  22,  is  the  hymn 

“  All  hail  the  power  of  JESU’s  name !  ” 

with  the  same  text  as  in  The  Gospel  Magazine  five  years 
earlier.  To  know  the  author  of  the  book,  then,  was  to 
find  the  writer  of  the  hymn.  But  the  book  was  not  pub¬ 
lished  and  circulated  by  the  book  trade.  It  was  printed 
privately  “  for  the  editor  ” ;  and  outside  the  circle  of  the 
author’s  friends  was  very  likely  not  even  heard  of. 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


158 

(2)  The  hymn  itself,  however,  had  appeared  in  the 
Magazine  at  a  time  when  Independents  and  Baptists  had 
been  singing  Dr.  Watts’s  hymns  a  long  while,  and  were 
looking  out  for  fresh  hymns  to  add  to  them.  As  early  as 
1784  George  Burder  had  taken  this  hymn  into  his  Col¬ 
lection  0)  Hymns  intended  as  a  Supplement  to  Dr. 
Watts's  Psalms  and  Hymns.  But  he  did  not  give  the 
names  of  the  authors  of  any  of  the  hymns. 

(3)  In  1787  Dr.  Rippon  published  his  notable  “  Selec¬ 
tion  ”  as  an  Appendix  to  Dr.  Watts.  He  included  this 
hymn,  with  some  changes  and  a  new  verse.  He  was  a 
painstaking  editor  and  sought  to  give  the  authors’  names. 
But  in  this  hymn  he  left  a  blank  for  the  author’s  name, 
which  evidently  he  did  not  know. 

(4)  In  an  edition  of  a  hymn  book  called  Select  Hymns 
and  Anthems,  printed  at  Tunbridge-Wells  about  1790, 
appeared  a  curious  variation  or  revision  of  the  hymn, 
beginning 

“All  hail!  the  powers  of  Jesus’  grace. 

Let  angels  prostrate  fall: 

Bring  forth  the  royal  diadem, 

And  crown  him,  Lord  of  all.” 

This  was  by  “  T.  B.”  Now  who  was  T.  B.?  Were  these 
the  initials  of  the  original  author,  now  presenting  a  re¬ 
vised  version  of  his  hymn?  Or  was  T.  B.  a  plagiarist, 
appropriating  for  his  own  materials  that  no  one  else  had 
claimed?  Neither  the  present  writer  nor  his  correspond¬ 
ents  in  England  have  been  able  to  identify  “  T.  B.” 

(5)  In  1801  two  Independent  clergymen,  Messrs.  Wil¬ 
liams  and  Boden,  published  A  Collection  of  Six  Hundred 
Hymns  to  supplement  Watts.  They  copied  this  hymn 
from  Rippon’s  book,  but  they  filled  Rippon’s  blank  with 
“  PERRONETT  ”  as  the  author’s  name. 


ALL  HAIL  THE  POWER  OF  JESUS’  NAME 


159 

(6)  John  Dobell’s  New  Selection  of  1806  won  a  great 
success.  In  it  he  printed  “  All  hail  ”  with  some  changes. 
He  gave  the  author’s  name  as  “  Duncan.”  The  Rev. 
John  Duncan  was  a  Scottish  Presbyterian  and  one  of 
four  friends  of  Dobell  who  prefixed  their  “  Recommenda¬ 
tion  ”  to  his  hymn  book.  Maybe  Dr.  Duncan  had  made 
a  revised  text  of  the  hymn  for  his  own  use,  and  gave  a 
manuscript  copy  to  Dobell,  who  thought  it  Duncan’s 
own.  For  some  reason  Duncan  never  had  his  own  name 
erased  in  later  editions  of  Dobell’s  book.  And  so  a  tradi¬ 
tion  arose  that  “  All  hail  ”  was  written  by  “  Duncan.” 
Among  Dr.  Duncan’s  own  descendants  the  tradition 
merged  into  an  established  truth.  On  the  strength  of 
Dobell’s  authority,  even  the  enlarged  edition  of  Rippon’s 
book,  as  late  as  1844,  inserted  Duncan’s  name  where 
Rippon  himself  had  left  a  blank. 

(7)  In  1808  Thomas  Young  published  his  Beauties  of 
Dr.  Watts,  &c.  Young  is  said  to  have  been  the  immedi¬ 
ate  successor  of  the  Rev.  Edward  Perronet  as  pastor  of 
a  small  dissenting  congregation  at  Canterbury.  It  is 
further  said  that  Young  in  his  book  attributes  this 
hymn  to  his  predecessor  and  also  quotes  from  Occasional 
Verses  of  1785  several  pieces  as  Perronet’s.  The  writer 
has  a  copy  of  Beauties  of  Dr.  Watts,  but  not  apparently 
the  same  book  here  referred  to.  He  does  not  question 
these  facts,  but  they  are  not  within  his  knowledge.  They 
seem  to  show  that  Young  acted  on  personal  or  at  least 
local  information  in  ascribing  this  poem  to  Edward  Per¬ 
ronet.  His  ascription  certainly  attracted  little  attention 
at  the  time. 

(8)  The  hymn  “All  hail  ”  came  over  to  this  country 
in  copies  of  Dr.  Rippon’s  hymn  book  of  1787,  brought 
or  sent  here;  the  book  itself  being  reprinted  in  New  York 


160  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

as  early  as  1792.  And  thus  the  hymn  came  with  a  blank 
space  for  the  author’s  name.  It  caught  the  eye  of  Oliver 
Holden,  a  business  man  of  Charlestown,  Massachusetts, 
who  was  a  self-taught  musician  and  quite  successful  in 
composing  hymn  tunes  in  the  florid  style  then  in  vogue. 


THE  ORGAN  AT  WHICH  “  CORONATION  ”  WAS  COMPOSED 

He  composed  his  jubilant  “  Coronation  ”  for  this  hymn, 
and  printed  it  in  his  Union  Harmony,  an  oblong  tune 
book  in  two  volumes,  published  at  Boston  in  1793.  From 
Holden’s  own  copy,  with  the  original  copyright  certificate 
pasted  in,  the  present  writer  quotes  the  heading  of  the 
tune:  “Coronation.  C.  M.  Words  by  the  Rev.  Mr, 


ALL  HAIL  THE  POWER  OF  JESUS’  NAME  161 

Medley.”  Samuel  Medley  was  one  of  The  Gospel  Maga¬ 
zine  circle  of  hymn  writers.  But  why  Holden  selected 
him  for  this  honor  is  not  clear.  Nor  is  it  important,  as 
Holden  did  not  start  a  Medley  tradition. 

(9)  The  hymn  came  anew  to  this  country  in  Dobell’s 
hymn  book,  reprinted  here  in  1810.  With  it  came  Dun¬ 
can’s  name  as  author ;  and  here  the  “  Duncan  ”  tradition 
gained  new  currency.  So  that  when  the  time  came  around 
for  American  Presbyterians  and  Congregationalists  to 
make  hymn  books  of  their  own,  it  was  as  the  hymn  of 
“  Duncan  ”  that  “  All  hail  ”  went  into  them  one  by  one. 
Not  that  any  of  the  editors  had  the  least  idea  who  or 
what  “  Duncan  ”  was. 

(10)  The  Evangelical  Magazine  for  December,  1858, 
had  a  rather  teasing  communication  from  “  J.  K.”  of 
Stepney,  who  seems  to  have  met  a  son  of  one  of  Edward 
Perronet’s  Canterbury  friends.  “  We  have  before  us,” 
he  says,  “  the  hymn,  1  All  hail,  &c.,’  on  a  card  printed 
about  50  years  since,  at  Canterbury,  for  the  use  of  a 
Sunday-school  in  that  city,  to  which  is  appended  the 
following  notice  of  the  author,  4  The  Rev.  Edward  Per- 
ronet  died  at  Canterbury,  January  2,  1792.’  ”  [His  dying 
words  follow.] 

“  This  is  evidential,”  as  the  spiritualists  say.  But  the 
date  is  vague,  and  did  the  card  say  it  was  printed  at 
Canterbury,  or  did  J.  K’s  friend  say  that  it  was?  J.  K. 
adds  that  “  the  copy  of  ‘  Occasional  Verses  ’  ”  “  now  be¬ 
fore  us  was  presented  by  Mr.  Perronet  himself  to  the  late 
Mrs.  Gellatly.”  But  was  the  book  so  “  autographed  by 
the  author  ”  ?  Or  was  this  only  the  remembered  state¬ 
ment  of  “  the  late  Mrs.  Gellatly  ”  ? 

(n)  In  1892  Dr.  Julian’s  great  Dictionary  of  Hymnol- 
ology  appeared.  The  annotator  of  this  hymn  is  assured  of 


C  39  2 

ON  SLEEP. 

EMBLEM  of  death  I  as  is  its  conch  the  Grave, 
Doom'd  to  contain  the  Cotoard  and  the  Brave  ; 
Where  ftecp  reclin'd,  ih z  guilty  and  the  pure , 

Alike  tntomb’d  — feque/Ier'd  an i  Jecure  ; 

Referv’d  alike  in  that  dread  hour  to  wake, 

Deftin’d  ro  Band— and  each  their  defltne  take. 

Peace  to  the  loft — while  judgment  mai  ks  the  fit  ft, 
Ere  yet  arraign’d — accurfing,  and  aecuvft. 

Rais'd  from  their  bed,  to  wrap  in  deep  no  more. 
Reviv’d  they  gaze,  and  horribly  adore. 

Oh,  fatal  deep  !  that  thus  awak’d  to  woe. 

No  longer  eafe— no  longer  reft  fhalS  know  ! 

E’en  here  a  foretafte  of  that  keener  fleet. 

That  fools  have  mock’d —and  dying  fools  rnuft  feel. 


THE  POWDER  OF  DIVINE  VENGEANCE, 


A  SACRED  SONNET. 


L 


WHEN  God  for  fin  (hall  death  demand, 
Who  can  before  His  judgment  ftaud  ! 
The  proud  fhall  bend-— the  mighty  fall. 

Before  the  Lord,  the  Judge  of'  all, 


D  2 


II. 


THE  SOLUTION  OF  THE  PUZZLE  AS  TO  AUTHORSHIP 


ALL  HAIL  THE  POWER  OF  JESUS’  NAME  163 

Perronet’s  authorship.  But  apparently  he  had  not  heard 
of  J.  K.  The  only  actual  proofs  he  offers  are  (a)  that  one 
piece  in  Occasional  Verses  is  dedicated  to  the  memory 
of  Vincent  Perronet,  who  was  Edward’s  father,  and  others 
“  apparently  to  various  members  of  his  family,  who  are 
indicated  by  their  initials  only  and  ( b )  that  the  copy 
of  Occasional  Verses  in  the  British  Museum  is  bound  up 
with  two  poetical  pamphlets,  one  of  them  bearing  Per¬ 
ronet’s  signature,  while  the  other  “  may  also  be  ascribed 
to  him  with  certainty.” 

(12)  When  the  writer  began  to  prepare  this  study  he 
examined  the  grounds  of  his  own  faith  in  Perronet’s  au¬ 
thorship  of  “  All  hail.”  “  Is  the  evidence  of  it  complete 
and  satisfying?  ”  he  asked  himself.  He  had  to  acknowl¬ 
edge  that  it  was  not. 

The  writer  made  up  his  mind  to  examine  his  copy  of 
Occasional  Verses  minutely  for  some  further  clue  of 
authorship.  This  he  did  without  result  up  to  page  201. 
There  he  found  that  the  verses  in  memory  of  C.  P.  and 
D.  P.  were  acrostics.  The  first  letter  of  each  line  of  the 
former,  read  downward,  spelled  Charles  Perronet,  and 
those  of  the  second  spelled  Damaris  Perronet  —  Edward’s 
brother  and  sister.  Then  the  writer  knew  what  further 
to  look  for,  and  found  it  on  page  39 ;  an  acrostic  reveal¬ 
ing  Edward  Perronet’s  own  name. 

This  little  discovery  seems  to  settle  the  matter  finally. 
Perronet  acknowledged  his  authorship  of  the  book  and 
the  hymn  in  his  own  way.  Doubtless  he  did  not  expect 
to  wait  one  hundred  and  twenty-six  years  for  his  ac¬ 
knowledgement  to  be  discovered. 

We  can  now  see  easily  enough  how  things  happened 
as  they  did.  Shrubsole  was  living  in  the  same  city  of 
Canterbury  as  Perronet,  and  was  no  doubt  one  of  the 


z64  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

friends  to  whom  Perronet  showed  or  gave  a  manuscript 
copy  of  his  hymn.  Shrubsole  liked  it  and  set  it  to  music 
which  he  sent  to  The  Gospel  Magazine  for  publication. 
And  when  the  remainder  of  the  hymn  was  asked  for  he 
turned  in  his  own  copy  or  got  one  from  the  author.  > 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

There  was  probably  no  Church  of  England  clergyman 
whom  the  Wesleys  relied  on  so  much  as  Vincent  Perro¬ 
net,  Vicar  of  Shoreham,  in  Kent.  He  was  a  gentle  and 
studious  saint,  son  of  a  French  refugee  and  retaining  the 
French  charm  of  manner.  His  son  Edward,  born  in 
1721,  was  brought  up  in  the  Church  and  fully  intended 
to  enter  its  ministry,  but,  under  the  influence  of  the 
Wesleys,  became  a  Methodist  traveling  preacher.  He 
started  out  at  once  to  accompany  Charles  Wesley  on  a 
preaching  tour.  “  He  got  a  deal  of  abuse  thereby,  and 
not  a  little  dirt,”  Charles  said,  “  both  which  he  took 
very  patiently.” 

Perronet  seems  to  have  been  a  bold  and  successful 
preacher  and  a  man  of  undoubted  piety.  But  he  was 
impulsive  and  restless  under  the  control  of  the  Wesleys, 
and  soon  began  to  make  trouble  for  them.  Visiting  from 
house  to  house  he  would  criticize  them,  especially  their 
refusal  to  allow  their  preachers  to  administer  the  sacra¬ 
ments.  He  developed  an  acrid  antipathy  to  the  Church 
of  England,  and  in  1756  published  a  satire  in  verse,  The 
Mitre ,  ridiculing  episcopal  government  and  priestly  pre¬ 
tension.  It  was  a  grief  to  his  father  and  a  serious  matter 
for  the  Wesleys.  And  among  them  they  persuaded  Per¬ 
ronet  to  suppress  it.  He  must  have  given  away  some 
copies,  for  a  few  still  survive. 


ALL  HAIL  THE  POWER  OF  JESUS’  NAME  165 

Later  he  left  the  Methodists  and  became  a  preacher 
in  the  Countess  of  Huntingdon’s  Connexion.  But  she, 
too,  remonstrated  against  his  bitterness  toward  the 
Church.  He  left  her  and  became  pastor  of  a  small  dis¬ 
senting  meeting  in  Canterbury,  where  he  preached  until 
his  death  on  January  8,  1792.  He  was  buried  in  the 
cloister  of  the  famous  cathedral. 

And  so  closed  obscurely  just  such  a  career  as  may  be 
worked  out  by  a  good  man  of  no  commanding  gifts,  with 
an  irascible  temper,  an  impatience  of  authority,  and  a 
touch  of  bitterness  that  grows  with  “  not  being  under¬ 
stood.”  His  hymn  is  the  one  achievement  of  his  life.  It 
breaks  through  the  crusty  manner  of  an  unappreciated  ^ 
and  disappointed  man,  and  reveals  him  as  one  that  had 
“  such  exalted  views  of  the  Lord  Jesus,  and  so  completely 
enthroned  Him  in  his  thoughts  and  affections.” 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  In  The  Gospel  Magazine  the  hymn  was  entitled 
“  On  the  Resurrection.  The  Lord  is  King.”  Hence  the 
opening  “All  hail”:  the  risen  Lord’s  salutation  on  the 
resurrection  morning  according  to  Matt.  28:9.  And 
the  angels  were  first  to  proclaim  him.  But  is  the  hymn 
really  an  appropriate  Easter  hymn? 

2.  This  hymn  is  a  religious  song  rather  than  a  religious 
poem.  Its  structure  makes  it  very  monotonous  to  read. 
But  its  structure  makes  it  also  very  effective  for  singing ; 
each  verse  beginning  afresh  and  mounting  to  the  full- 
chorded  refrain.  Perhaps  no  other  hymn  is  quite  so 
jubilant  and  triumphant.  It  has  become  very  dear  to 
the  heart  of  the  Church,  and,  if  sung  reverently,  can 
hardly  fail  to  warm  that  heart.  It  is  of  course  possible 


166  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

to  use  it,  like  firecrackers,  for  the  sake  of  making  a  noise 
at  a  festival. 

3.  A  strain  from  Shrubsole’s  tune  (it  has  long  been 
called  “  Miles  Lane  ”)  is  carved  on  his  tombstone  at 
Bunhill  Fields,  London.  A  verse  of  the  hymn  is  engraved 
on  Oliver  Holden’s  tomb  in  the  old  Burying  Ground  at 
Charlestown.  In  England  the  hymn  has  been  inseparable 
from  Shrubsole’s  tune.  In  this  country  it  has  been  in¬ 
separable  from  Holden’s.  Both  tunes  are  printed  in  The 
Hymnal  revised.  Both  are  a  part  of  the  history  of  the 
hymn;  and  having  both  we  are  at  liberty  to  choose  be¬ 
tween  them. 


XV 

O  GOD  OF  BETHEL,  BY  WHOSE  HAND 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  O  God  of  Bethel,  by  whose  hand 

Thy  people  still  are  fed, 

Who  through  this  weary  pilgrimage 
Hast  all  our  fathers  led, 

2  Our  vows,  our  prayers,  we  now  present 

Before  Thy  throne  of  grace ; 

God  of  our  fathers,  be  the  God 
Of  their  succeeding  race. 

3  Through  each  perplexing  path  of  life 

Our  wandering  footsteps  guide 
Give  us  each  day  our  daily  bread, 

And  raiment  fit  provide. 

4  O  spread  Thy  covering  wings  around 

Till  all  our  wanderings  cease, 

And  at  our  Father’s  loved  abode 
Our  souls  arrive  in  peace. 

5  Such  blessings  from  Thy  gracious  hand 

Our  humble  prayers  implore; 

And  Thou  shalt  be  our  chosen  God 
And  portion  evermore. 

Verses  1-4  by  Rev.  Philip  Doddridge,  1737,  recast  by  Rev. 
John  Logan,  1781:  verse  1,  line  1,  altered,  and  verse  5  added 
in  Scottish  Translations  and  Paraphrases ,  1781 
167 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


1 68 

Note:  There  are  three  texts  of  this  hymn: 

1.  Doddridge’s  original  text  of  173%  as  hereinafter  printed.  From 
this  the  hymn  went  into  the  Translations  and  Paraphrases  of  1745, 
with  trifling  changes.  This  is  the  first  printed  text. 

2.  The  text  given  by  Job  Orton  in  his  collection  of  Doddridge’s 
hymns  (1755),  opening  with  “O  God  of  Jacob.”  The  changes  in 
J.  D.  Humphrey’s  1839  edition  of  the  hymns  may  be  passed  over. 

3.  The  recast  made  by  the  Rev.  John  Logan,  printed  (with  some 
variances)  in  his  Poems  and  in  the  Translations  and  Paraphrases, 
both  of  1781.  It  is  the  latter  text  (given  above)  that  has  become 
so  familiar. 

This  and  the  other  hymns  of  Dr.  Doddridge  belong  to 
the  period  of  the  eighteenth  century  revival  but  are 
scarcely  of  it.  They  run  rather  with  the  stream  of  hymn 
singing  and  hymn  writing  among  English  Independents, 
of  which  Dr.  Watts  was  the  fountainhead.  Hymnologists 
say  that  Doddridge  is  one  of  “  the  school  of  Watts.” 
They  mean  that  Watts’s  hymns  became  so  much  the  pat¬ 
tern  for  other  hymn  writers  that  he  was  like  a  school¬ 
master  giving  out  specimens  of  penmanship  to  be  imi¬ 
tated  ;  and  that  Doddridge  was  one  of  the  imitators.  But 
he  was  head  boy  in  the  school,  and  his  hymns  came  to  be 
regarded  as  a  desirable  addition  even  to  those  of  his 
master. 

The  hymn  we  are  now  studying  won  by  its  own  merits 
a  place  in  the  wider  spreading  movement  to  allow  the 
singing  of  human  hymns.  For  when  that  movement 
reached  even  Psalm-loving  Scotland,  this  was  one  of  the 
“  Paraphrases  ”  selected  by  the  General  Assembly  in  1781 
and  recommended  to  the  churches. 

“THE  GOOD  DR.  DODDRIDGE” 

In  some  “  unknown  house  in  the  labyrinth  of  London 
streets  ”  Philip  Doddridge  was  born  in  the  summer  of 


O  GOD  OF  BETHEL,  BY  WHOSE  HAND  169 

1702.  It  was  a  humble  home  and  a  very  sickly 
baby.  His  earliest  recollection  was  of  his  mother  ex¬ 
plaining  the  scenes  of  Bible  history  pictured  on  the  blue- 
and-white  Dutch  tiles  lining  the  fireplace:  Eve's  apple 
tree  with  the  serpent,  Noah  at  the  window  of  the  ark, 
a  very  large  Jonah  coming  forth  from  a  very  small  whale, 
Peter  crossing  the  Sea  of  Galilee  in  a  Dutch  three-decker, 
the  prodigal  son  in  a  periwig,  and  the  rest.  She  would 
tell  him  of  her  father,  driven  from  his  Bohemian  home 
by  religious  persecution,  and  show  him  the  Luther’s  Bible 
in  black  stamped  leather  he  brought  away  beneath  the 
peasant  clothes  he  wore ;  of  his  father’s  father  also,  one 
of  the  Church  of  England  clergy  ejected  in  1662  for  con¬ 
science’  sake. 

Both  father  and  mother  died  while  Philip  was  a  child 
at  Kingston  grammar  school.  Sent  to  another  school  at 
St.  Albans,  he  won  the  notice  of  Dr.  Samuel  Clark,  the 
Presbyterian  pastor,  who  befriended  him  and  admitted 
him  to  the  Communion  at  nineteen.  He  went  up  to 
London  to  seek  encouragement  toward  preparing  for  the 
ministry.  The  Duchess  of  Bedford  offered  to  finance 
him,  but  only  if  he  would  conform  to  the  established 
Church.  The  dissenting  leaders  were  cold.  Dr.  Clark 
called  him  back,  and  sent  him  to  be  trained  by  John  Jen¬ 
nings,  at  Kibworth,  where  he  was  happy  in  his  books 
and  content  in  his  poverty.  In  1723  he  was  qualified  to 
preach  by  the  county  meeting  of  ministers,  and  became 
pastor  at  out-of-the-way  Kibworth,  where,  he  said,  “  I 
have  not  so  much  as  a  tea  table  in  my  whole  diocese  and 
but  one  hoop  petticoat  within  the  whole  circuit  ” ;  but 
where  he  could  spend  twelve  hours  a  day  in  his  study. 
Doddridge’s  chance  came  at  Market  Harborough,  to 
which  he  had  moved,  when  the  Independents  decided  to 


DR.  PHILIP  DODDRIDGE 


O  GOD  OF  BETHEL ,  BY  WHOSE  HAND 


171 

set  up  an  academy  there  and  selected  him  as  principal. 
Only  twenty-six  years  old,  he  consulted  Dr.  Watts,  then 
fifty-four,  and  thus  began  a  warm  friendship  with  the 
great  man.  Very  shortly  he  was  called  to  a  larger  church 
at  Northampton.  He  took  his  academy  with  him  and 
made  it  famous;  spending  the  rest  of  his  life  there  as 
teacher,  pastor,  and  author. 

In  Doddridge’s  time  “  the  dissenting  interest  ”  was  on 
the  down  grade.  Its  heroic  age  was  past:  easy  days 
brought  easy  ways  and  spiritual  indifference.  Dr.  Watts 
and  other  Nonconformist  leaders  were  as  much  opposed 
to  “  enthusiasm  ”  as  were  the  bishops  themselves.  They 
turned  their  backs  on  the  revival  and  scorned  the  Wesleys 
and  Whitefield.  The  kindly  Doddridge,  when  he  got 
to  know  them  better,  could  not  keep  it  up.  In  London, 
one  day  in  1743,  he  even  led  in  public  prayer  at  White- 
field’s  Tabernacle.  Whereupon  Dr.  Watts  wrote  him 
that  many  of  his  friends  were  asking  an  explanation  of 
his  “  sinking  the  character  of  a  minister  and  especially 
of  a  tutor  among  the  dissenters,  so  low  thereby.”  When 
later  he  had  Whitefield  to  preach  from  his  Northampton 
pulpit,  a  very  storm  of  protest  and  reproach  rained  on 
him :  all  of  which  only  strengthened  the  stand  he 
had  taken.  He  was  the  first  Nonconformist  leader  to 
hold  out  a  brotherly  hand  to  the  great  evangelists. 

Doddridge’s  one  aim  in  all  his  laborious  ministry  was 
to  deepen  the  spiritual  life,  not  only  among  dissenters 
but  in  general  society.  To  this  practical  end  his  many 
books  were  written.  His  Rise  and  Progress  of  Religion 
in  the  Soul  became  something  like  a  religious  classic. 
The  Family  Expository  covering  all  the  New  Testament, 
took  twelve  years  of  his  life  and  was  greatly  esteemed  in 
its  day.  He  disliked  controversy  and  liked  a  theology 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


172 

emphasizing  the  statements  of  Scripture  rather  than  the 
definitions  of  the  schools.  In  a  controversial  age  this 
led  some  to  question  the  straitness  of  his  orthodoxy. 
Nobody  ever  questioned  his  loving-kindness. 

He  was  not  a  great  writer  and  probably  not  a  great 
preacher.  He  could  not  stay  the  decline  of  dissent  even 
in  his  own  parish.  But  he  did  good  service  in  many 
ways :  the  more  easily  because  in  spite  of  bodily  weakness 
and  consumptive  tendencies  he  had  a  healthy  mind,  a 
heart  full  of  God’s  sunshine,  and  pleasant  ways.  Perhaps 
he  helped  the  most  simply  by  being  so  lovable,  for  to 
love  a  good  man  is  a  big  step  in  anybody’s  religious  edu¬ 
cation.  Many  hearts  followed  him  on  his  voyage  to 
Lisbon  in  the  autumn  of  1751,  made  possible  by  the 
bounty  of  Lady  Huntingdon  and  other  friends.  “  I  can 
as  well  go  to  Heaven  from  Lisbon  as  from  my  own 
study  at  Northampton,”  he  told  her  at  parting.  The 
study  at  Northampton  is  still  kept  just  as  he  left  it,  and 
at  Lisbon  his  body  still  lies  in  the  English  cemetery,  near 
the  grave  of  the  great  novelist,  Henry  Fielding. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

Doddridge’s  “  works  ”  gather  dust  on  the  shelves ;  some 
of  his  hymns  are  in  familiar  use.  Like  those  of  Davies 
and  other  eighteenth  century  preachers  they  were  written 
in  the  glow  of  sermon  composition  to  be  sung  at  the 
sermon’s  close.  “  O  God  of  Bethel  ”  was  to  follow  a  ser¬ 
mon  on  “  Jacob’s  Vow,”  from  Genesis  28:20-22.  During 
his  life  his  hymns  were  more  or  less  handed  about  in 
manuscript.  Four  years  after  his  death  his  friend  Job 
Orton  copied  three  hundred  and  seventy  of  them  from 
his  papers  and  published  them  as  Hymns  founded  on 


O  GOD  OF  BETHEL ,  BY  WHOSE  HAND  173 

various  texts  in  the  Holy  Scriptures.  By  the  late  Philip 
Doddridge ,  D.D.  [1755.]  Others  have  been  published 
since  and  some  are  yet  unprinted.  In  Orton’s  book  this 
hymn  begins,  “  O  God  of  Jacob.”  The  earliest  form 
known  is  that  dated  “Jan.  16,  1736”  in  Doddridge’s 
own  handwriting,  which  the  present  writer  has  not  seen. 
Dr.  Julian,  who  has,  gives  it  thus : 


1 

Oh  God  of  Bethel,  by  whose  Hand 
Thine  Israel  still  is  fed 
Who  thro’  this  weary  Pilgrimage 
Hast  all  our  Fathers  led 

2 

To  thee  our  humble  Vows  we  raise 
To  thee  address  our  Prayer 
And  in  thy  kind  and  faithful  Breast 
Deposite  all  our  Care 

3 

If  thou  thro’  each  perplexing  Path 
Wilt  be  our  constant  Guide 
If  thou  wilt  daily  Bread  supply 
And  Raiment  wilt  provide 

4 

If  thou  wilt  spread  thy  Shield  around 
Till  these  our  wandrings  cease 
And  at  our  Father’s  lov’d  Abode 
Our  Souls  arrive  in  Peace 

5 

To  thee  as  to  our  Covenant  God 
We’ll  our  whole  selves  resign 
And  count  that  not  our  tenth  alone 
But  all  we  have  is  thine. 


I74  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

So  much  for  Dr.  Doddridge  and  the  hymn  as  he  wrote 
it.  Its  further  study  carries  us  over  into  Presbyterian 
Scotland. 


THE  SCOTTISH  “  PARAPHRASES  ” 

In  our  study  of  “  The  Lord’s  my  Shepherd,  I’ll  not 
want,”  we  saw  how  Calvin’s  ideal  of  singing  “  the  Bible 
only  ”  conquered  Scotland  at  the  Reformation,  and  made 
its  Church  a  Psalm  singing  Church ;  how  at  the  time  of 
the  Westminster  Assembly  a  new  version  of  “  The  Psalms 
of  David  in  meeter  ”  was  adopted ;  and  how  fond  Scottish 
hearts  became  of  that  “  Rous’s  Version.”  But  as  Dr. 
Watts’s  more  evangelical  renderings  of  Psalms  and  his 
hymns  came  to  be  known  they  caused  a  certain  restless¬ 
ness  and  on  the  part  of  many  ministers  a  desire  for  lib¬ 
erty  to  sing  them  or  something  like  them  in  church. 
Nevertheless  the  men  who  made  the  first  proposals  to 
change  the  established  usage  of  the  Scottish  people  must 
have  had  hopeful  temperaments.  Time  and  again  when 
a  movement  “  to  enlarge  the  Psalmody  ”  came  to  the 
surface  in  the  General  Assembly  it  was  quietly  side¬ 
tracked. 

The  Assembly  of  1741  pigeonholed  a  petition  that 
other  passages  of  Scripture  in  meter  be  added  to  the 
Psalms.  Next  year  a  persistent  presbytery  called  it  up. 
They  succeeded  in  getting  a  committee  appointed  to 
gather  materials  and  in  putting  such  pressure  on  the 
committee  that  after  four  years  it  laid  before  the  As¬ 
sembly  of  1745  a  meager  collection  of  forty- five  Trans¬ 
lations  and  Paraphrases  of  several  passages  of  Sacred 
Scripture,  nineteen  of  them  taken  from  Dr.  Watts.  This 
had  to  go  down  to  the  presbyteries  for  their  approval. 
Then  followed  a  contest  in  which  the  innovators  kept 


Tranilations  and  Parap 


" 

A. 


Of  feveral  Paflages  of 


iSrIB 


■  ■  i 


Mall 


■  . .  uw  wMinrini  II  ililiiiferMMiliMi 


4*ftv  enss1 


SACRED  SCRIPTURE, 


Collefted  and  prepared  by  a  Committee  <rf 
General  Aflcmbly  of  the  Choreh  '  ~ 
iRnd,  in  order  to  be  fung  io 


f  v  s,  ..  v 


_ I 


THE  FIRST  HYMN  BOOK  OF  PRESBYTERIAN  SCOTLAND 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


176 

the  little  book  for  ten  years  before  the  General  Assembly, 
where  they  always  seemed  to  be  winning,  only  to  be 
baffled  by  the  lovers  of  the  old  Psalms  in  the  presbyteries. 
These  standfasts  saw  to  it  that  enough  of  the  presby¬ 
teries  refrained  year  after  year  from  taking  any  action, 
until  the  patience  of  the  innovators  was  worn  out  and 
their  project  abandoned. 

Twenty  years  passed  before  it  was  renewed,  and  six 
more  before  a  new  collection  of  sixty-seven  “  para¬ 
phrases  ”  and  five  “  hymns  ”  was  ready  to  be  sent  down 
for  the  presbyteries  to  report  upon.  That  was  in  1781, 
and  the  Assembly  gave  the  churches  leave  to  sing  them 
while  the  matter  was  pending.  The  old  tactics  were  re¬ 
sumed,  and  so  many  presbyteries  ignored  the  new  book 
also  that  no  further  action  could  be  taken  by  the  Assem¬ 
bly.  But  perhaps  the  standfasts  overreached  themselves 
this  time,  since  the  failure  to  take  final  action  upon  the 
Paraphrases  extended  indefinitely  the  permission  already 
given  to  sing  them  pending  such  action.  In  this  way  the 
little  book,  whose  title  page  is  before  us,  became  the  first 
hymn  book  of  Scottish  Presbyterianism :  it  made  the  first 
breach  in  the  old  Psalmody. 

In  some  parishes  bitter  feeling  and  disturbances  fol¬ 
lowed  when  a  minister  attempted  to  have  the  new  Par¬ 
aphrases  sung.  There  were,  however,  many  ministers 
who  never  gave  them  out  until  their  life’s  end ;  and  the 
outraged  feelings  of  many  plain  people  have  a  monument 
in  Scottish  Bibles  still  preserved  in  which  the  leaves  con¬ 
taining  the  Paraphrases  are  carefully  pasted  down  or 
from  which  they  are  torn  out.  But  in  the  end  they  fairly 
won  their  place  beside  the  Psalms  and  became  almost 
as  dear  to  the  people. 

“  O  God  of  Bethel  ”  is  the  second  of  the  Paraphrases 


O  GOD  OF  BETHEL,  BY  WHOSE  HAND  177 

of  1781,  but  holds  the  first  place  in  Scottish  hearts.  In 
illustration  of  this  it  is  worth  while  to  quote  a  charming 
letter  which  Samuel  R.  Crockett,  the  novelist,  sent  in 
response  to  Mr.  W.  T.  Stead’s  inquiry  for  “  the  hymns 
that  have  helped”  him:  — 

“  One  hymn  I  love,  and  that  (to  be  Irish)  is  not  a 
hymn,  but  what  in  our  country  is  mystically  termed  a 
‘  paraphrase.’  It  is  that  which,  when  sung  to  the  tune 
of  St.  Paul’s,  makes  men  and  women  square  themselves 
and  stand  erect  to  sing,  like  an  army  that  goes  gladly  to 
battle:  ‘  O  God  of  Bethel  ’  — 

“  I  wish  I  could  quote  it  all.  Of  course  it  is  in  vain 
to  try  to  tell  what  these  songs  of  ‘  Christ’s  ain  Kirk  and 
Covenant  ’  are  to  us  who  sucked  them  in  with  our  mother- 
milk  and  heard  them  crooned  for  cradle  songs  to  ‘  Coles- 
hill  ’  and  1  Kilmarnock.’  But  be  assured  that  whatever 
new  songs  are  written,  noble  and  sincere,  there  will  al¬ 
ways  be  a  number  who  will  walk  in  the  old  paths,  and, 
by  choice,  seek  for  their  4  helping  ’  (about  which  they 
will  mostly  keep  silence)  from  the  songs  their  fathers 
sang.” 

But  the  use  of  this  paraphrase  is  not  confined  to  Scot¬ 
land.  It  has  crossed  the  border  and  become  as  familiar 
in  England  as  in  Scotland.  It  was  sung  in  Westminster 
Abbey  in  1874  at  the  public  funeral  of  David  Livingstone, 
the  great  African  missionary  and  traveler,  and  again  in 
1879  at  the  funeral  of  Lord  Lawrence,  Governor-General 
of  India.  And  the  biographers  of  both  men  refer  to  the 
impressiveness  of  the  simple  words,  as  sung  to  the  music 
of  Tallis.  In  this  country  and  in  Canada  the  Scottish 
immigration  would  of  itself  insure  a  widespread  use  of 
the  paraphrase. 


i7» 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  No  doubt  the  quaint  title,  Translations  and  Para¬ 
phrases,  was  originally  intended  to  conciliate  those  still 
holding  to  the  Calvinistic  position  that  the  inspired  words 
of  Scripture  should  furnish  the  only  “  subject-matter  of 
praise.”  And  yet  it  is  hard  to  believe  that  such  camou¬ 
flage  could  deceive  a  people  so  keen-eyed  in  searching 
the  Scripture.  “  O  God  of  Bethel,”  for  instance.  It  cer¬ 
tainly  is  not  a  “  translation  ”  of  the  passage  in  Genesis 
on  which  it  is  based ;  but  could  it  in  any  sense  be  regarded 
as  a  “  paraphrase  ”  of  that  passage,  or  is  it  simply  a 
free  human  hymn? 

2.  The  committee  who  prepared  the  Translations  and 
Paraphrases  of  1745  procured  a  copy  of  Doddridge’s 
hymn  in  manuscript  (it  had  not  appeared  in  print  as 
yet),  and  they  adopted  it  with  very  few  alterations.  The 
committee  of  1781,  on  the  other  hand,  made  a  great 
many,  as  may  be  seen  by  comparing  their  text  ( The 
Hymnal  revised,  No.  533)  with  the  original  as  quoted 
above.  These  amendments  were  doubtless  made  by  the 
Rev.  John  Logan,  a  member  of  the  committee  with  a  deft 
hand  at  verse-making  but  of  questionable  character,  to 
say  the  least.  Let  us  hope  it  was  only  an  exaggerated 
sense  of  the  value  of  his  improvements  of  Doddridge’s 
hymn  that  led  him  to  print  this  paraphrase  as  his  own 
among  his  Poems  of  that  same  year,  1781. 

Modern  feeling  runs  strongly  against  the  practice  of 
“  tinkering  ”  hymns,  as  was  done  so  freely  by  the  com¬ 
mittee  of  1781,  and  in  favor  of  singing  them  as  their 
authors  wrote  them.  In  the  case  of  this  paraphrase  a 
modern  editor  of  a  hymn  book  has  to  choose  whether  to 


O  GOD  OF  BETHEL,  BY  WHOSE  HAND 


179 

adopt  the  1781  text  or  to  go  back  to  the  original.  If  he 
is  a  good  editor  he  will  probably  say  (1)  that  Logan’s 
text  is  in  many  ways  better  than  Doddridge’s;  (2)  that 
the  hymn  as  Doddridge  wrote  it  is  practically  unknown, 
and,  as  Logan  altered  it,  widely  loved;  and,  if  he  is 
editing  a  Presbyterian  hymn  book,  he  will  probably  add 
(3)  that  the  form  in  which  the  hymn  appeared  in  the 
Paraphrases  of  1781  is  the  accepted  text  of  what  must 
be  recognized  as  one  of  the  historic  hymns  of  Presby¬ 
terianism. 

3.  In  Scotland,  “  O  God  of  Bethel  ”  is  still  sung  to 
“  St.  Paul,”  of  which  Mr.  Crockett  wrote,  a  tune  that 
dates  from  1749;  sometimes  to  the  older  tune  known 
there  as  “  French  ”  and  here  as  “  Dundee.”  In  West¬ 
minster  Abbey  it  is  still  sung  to  the  sixteenth  century 
tune  known  as  “  Tallis’s  Ordinal  ”  or  simply  “  Tallis.” 
“  Balerma,”  to  which  the  words  are  set  in  The  Hymnal 
revised,  is  also  Scottish,  an  arrangement  dating  only  from 
1833,  and  is  probably  more  acceptable  to  American  con¬ 
gregations  than  the  older  and  graver  tunes. 

4.  Of  the  thirteen  hymns  of  Doddridge  in  The  Hymnal 
revised,  “  Hark  the  glad  sound !  the  Saviour  comes  ”  and 
“  Jesus,  I  love  Thy  charming  Name  ”  seem  to  have  most 
of  his  vitality ;  “  How  gentle  God’s  commands,”  and  “  See 
Israel’s  gentle  Shepherd  stand  ”  most  of  his  tenderness. 
Queen  Victoria’s  husband  thought  so  much  of  “  O  happy 
day  that  fixed  my  choice  ”  that  he  had  it  sung  at  the 
confirmations  of  their  children.  In  this  country  it  has 
become  associated  (perhaps  indissolubly)  with  an  old- 
time  camp-meeting  melody,  carrying  a  jingle-like  re¬ 
frain,  with  which  many  good  people  would  not  care  to 
express  their  praise.  Toward  the  close  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  by  some  agency  as  yet  undiscovered,  “  My 


180  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

God,  and  is  Thy  table  spread  ”  got  itself  bound  up  with 
a  few  other  hymns  at  the  end  of  Church  of  England 
prayer  books,  and  it  has  been  a  favorite  Communion 
hymn  ever  since.  To  the  writer  it  seems  more  appropri¬ 
ate  to  those  who  stay  away  from  the  sacrament. 

And  there  are  a  few  more  of  the  thirteen  that  raise 
in  his  mind  a  question  whether  they  may  not  have  out¬ 
lived  their  usefulness.  Each  generation  develops  its  own 
natural  religious  idiom,  and  it  may  be  that  Doddridge’s 
“  Lord  of  the  Sabbath,  hear  us  pray  ”  and  “  Grace !  ’tis 
a  charming  sound,”  came  more  naturally  from  the  lips 
of  his  generation  than  they  do  from  ours. 


XVI 

HAIL  TO  THE  LORD’S  ANOINTED 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Hail  to  the  Lord’s  Anointed, 

Great  David’s  greater  Son! 

Hail,  in  the  time  appointed, 

His  reign  on  earth  begun! 

He  comes  to  break  oppression, 

To  set  the  captive  free, 

To  take  away  transgression, 

And  rule  in  equity. 

2  He  shall  come  down  like  showers 

Upon  the  fruitful  earth; 

And  love,  joy,  hope,  like  flowers, 

Spring  in  His  path  to  birth; 

Before  Him  on  the  mountains 
Shall  peace,  the  herald,  go. 

And  righteousness,  in  fountains, 

From  hill  to  valley  flow. 

3  Kings  shall  fall  down  before  Him, 

And  gold  and  incense  bring; 

All  nations  shall  adore  Him, 

His  praise  all  people  sing; 

For  Him  shall  prayer  unceasing 
And  daily  vows  ascend; 

His  kingdom  still  increasing, 

A  kingdom  without  end. 

4  O’er  every  foe  victorious, 

He  on  His  throne  shall  rest, 

From  age  to  age  more  glorious, 

All  blessing  and  all-blest: 

181 


182 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


The  tide  of  time  shall  never 
His  covenant  remove. 

His  name  shall  stand  for  ever,  — - 
That  Name  to  us  is  Love. 

James  Montgomery’s  version  ol  the  Seventy-second  Psalm, 
written  in  1821 

Note:  The  above  text  is  an  abridgment  of  the  original,  which  was 
in  eight  verses  as  printed  in  Songs  of  Zion,  1822. 

In  taking  up  this  hymn  of  James  Montgomery  we  pass 
over  into  the  nineteenth  century.  And  so  we  leave  behind 
us  the  eighteenth  century  hymns  —  of  Watts  and  his 
followers  on  the  one  side  and  of  the  Wesleys  and  other 
singers  of  the  great  revival  on  the  other. 

It  was  of  course  from  those  eighteenth  century  stores 
that  our  American  Churches,  whether  Evangelical  or  Uni¬ 
tarian,  had  to  draw  as  they  began  to  make  hymn  books 
of  their  own.  Now  the  dominant  note  of  those  hymns  is 
personal  piety.  It  is  interesting  and  in  a  way  touching 
to  remember  how  the  heart  of  our  witty  Boston  poet, 
Oliver  Wendell  Holmes,  a  rather  radical  Unitarian, 
turned  back  in  his  old  age  to  those  eighteenth  century 
hymns.  He  perceived  in  them  “  the  old  ring  of  saintli¬ 
ness  ”  and  a  virility  he  missed  in  modern  hymns.  “  When 
I  turn  to  the  hymn  book,  and  when  one  strikes  my  eye, 
I  cover  the  name  at  the  bottom  and  guess.  It  is,”  he 
said,  “almost  invariably  by  Watts  or  Wesley;  after 
them  there  are  very  few  which  are  good  for  much.” 

Perhaps  the  Unitarian  hymn  book  which  the  poet  had 
in  his  gallery  pew  at  King’s  Chapel  failed  to  do  justice  to 
the  later  hymn  writers,  choosing  those  that  gave  out  the 
ring  of  modern  liberalism  rather  than  “  the  old  ring 
of  saintliness.”  However  that  may  be,  most  Christians 
will  not  believe  that  deep  and  sincere  piety  passed  away 


HAIL  TO  THE  LORD’S  ANOINTED  183 

with  the  eighteenth  century  or  that  the  true  succession 
of  God’s  singing  men  has  been  broken  off. 

When  the  nineteenth  century  dawned,  the  voices  of 
all  the  great  hymn  writers  had  passed  into  silence.  Watts 
and  Doddridge  had  been  dead  for  the  half,  Toplady  for 
the  quarter  of  a  century.  The  Wesleys  had  been  dead 
for  a  decade;  Cowper  had  just  died;  only  Newton  sur¬ 
vived  in  the  weakness  of  old  age.  But  with  the  early 


THE  CHAPEL  COTTAGE  WHERE  JAMES  MONTGOMERY  WAS 

BORN,  IN  IRVINE,  SCOTLAND 

years  of  the  new  century  a  new  hymn  writer  appeared, 
worthy  to  take  his  place  in  the  great  succession.  This 
was  James  Montgomery,  a  Moravian  layman;  a  poor 
boy  with  nothing  to  depend  on  but  his  literary  talent ;  a 
forward-looking  man  who  kept  abreast  of  the  marked 
religious  progress  of  his  time ;  a  poet  who  could  not  only 
sing  over  the  old  songs  of  Zion  with  a  fresh  and  clear 
voice  but  could  also  furnish  new  songs  for  new  occasions. 


184 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

Shortly  after  writing  “  Children  of  the  heavenly  King,” 
John  Cennick  started  a  little  Moravian  settlement  in  the 
county  of  Antrim,  Ireland.  Among  the  neighbors  who 
joined  it  was  John  Montgomery,  apparently  a  laborer, 
who  for  some  gift  or  grace  was  made  a  Moravian 
preacher  and  sent  over  to  Irvine  on  the  Scottish  coast. 
There,  on  November  4,  1771,  in  a  cottage  adjoining  the 
Moravian  chapel,  his  son  James  was  born;  “narrowly  es¬ 
caping,”  he  used  afterwards  to  say,  “  being  an  Irishman.” 
When  the  parents  went  as  missionaries  to  the  West 
Indies  they  left  the  boy  at  the  Moravian  school  at  Ful- 
neck,  near  Leeds,  and  took  with  them  the  hope  that  he 
would  prepare  himself  for  the  ministry. 

It  was  a  very,  severe  school,  as  closely  guarded  against 
the  world  as  a  convent,  with  most  of  the  world’s  litera¬ 
ture  forbidden.  Dr.  Blair’s  poem,  “  The  Grave,”  was  an 
exception,  and  hearing  it  read  started  Montgomery’s  po¬ 
etic  impulse,  just  as  the  quaint  Moravian  hymn  book  in 
constant  use  started  his  lifelong  interest  in  hymns.  He 
neglected  the  prescribed  studies  and  spent  his  time  in 
composing  epics  in  Milton’s  manner.  The  Brethren  gave 
him  up  as  a  candidate  for  the  ministry  and  put  him  in  a 
baker’s  shop  as  shopboy. 

The  lad  became  very  unhappy  there  and  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  ran  away,  to  begin  the  world  with  three  shillings 
and  six  and  a  bundle  of  poems  in  his  pocket.  It  was 
characteristic  of  him  that  he  went  off  in  his  old  suit, 
leaving  behind  him  a  new  one  which  his  master  had  given 
him,  and  which  he  did  not  think  he  had  earned.  And  it 
was  no  doubt  humiliating  to  him  that  he  had  to  ask  his 


I 


I&6  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

old  teachers  at  Fulneck  for  a  recommendation  before  he 
could  get  even  a  situation  in  another  shop  in  the  village 
of  Wath.  This  also  he  left  after  a  year  and  went  up  to 
London  with  a  larger  bundle  of  poems  in  his  pocket  and 
the  vision  of  a  publisher  ready  to  print  them.  When  that 
hope  failed,  he  went  back  to  his  situation  at  Wath. 

One  day  in  his  twenty-second  year  he  saw  in  a  radical 
newspaper,  The  Sheffield  Register,  its  publisher’s  adver¬ 
tisement  for  a  clerk.  He  answered  it  in  person  and  se¬ 
cured  the  place.  He  began  to  exercise  his  literary  talent 
in  the  paper,  and,  when  its  proprietor  and  editor  had  to 
flee  from  political  prosecution,  a  fellow  townsman  found 
the  means  of  carrying  it  on,  and  put  Montgomery  in 
charge.  It  was  an  exciting  time  in  politics,  and  a  critical 
situation  for  the  young  editor  of  a  suspected  sheet.  The 
skies  were  lurid  with  reflections  of  the  flames  of  the 
French  Revolution.  Sheffield  was  in  the  thickest  of  the 
conflict  between  the  aristocrats  and  the  Jacobins.  And 
amidst  all  the  clamor  for  the  rights  of  man,  the  govern¬ 
ment  was  insistently  trying  to  raise  recruits  for  the  ex¬ 
pected  war  with  France. 

The  ardent  young  editor’s  sympathies  were  with  the 
democrats,  and  he  was  eager  for  parliamentary  reform, 
to  say  the  least.  Almost  at  once  he  was  arrested  for 
printing  a  seditious  ballad  and  put  in  jail  for  three 
months.  A  few  months  after  his  release  he  was  charged 
with  seditious  libel  for  an  account  he  printed  of  the  man¬ 
ner  in  which  the  military  commander  had  put  down  a 
riot  in  the  streets,  was  found  guilty,  and  imprisoned  once 
more  for  six  months.  He  spent  his  enforced  leisure  in 
jail  in  composing  poetry,  afterwards  printed  as  Prison 
Amusements.  On  coming  out  he  resumed  his  editorship 
and  kept  it  up  until  1825.  But  at  heart  he  was  neither 


HAIL  TO  THE  LORD’S  ANOINTED  187 

a  politician  nor  a  newspaper  man,  but  a  poet,  and 
through  these  years  he  gave  more  thought  to  poetry  than 
to  making  the  most  of  his  newspaper.  It  was  his  old  Ful- 
neck  School  scheme  of  life  over  again,  and  not  the  way 
that  leads  to  fortune;  but  Montgomery  was  unmarried 
and  free  to  follow  the  gleam. 

As  calmer  times  came,  Montgomery’s  own  opinions  be¬ 
came  mellower,  and  his  increasing  poetic  reputation  re¬ 
flected  luster  on  Sheffield.  The  simple  goodness  of  the 
man  and  his  unfailing  helpfulness  in  every  worthy  cause 
conquered  all  hearts.  He  became  recognized  as  the  first 
citizen  of  the  town,  and  the  government  that  had  twice 
jailed  him  put  him  on  its  pension  list.  And  so  he  spent 
his  last  years  contentedly  and  helpfully,  esteemed  by  all 
as  the  best  of  men  and  by  many  as  a  great  poet.  He  had 
not  been  without  his  struggles  to  gain  a  place,  but  he 
bore  no  grudge  against  life,  except  perhaps  at  the  persis¬ 
tency  with  which  many  people  confused  his  personality 
with  that  of  a  namesake  whose  poetry  he  did  not  admire. 

Dr.  Theodore  L.  Cuyler,  of  Brooklyn,  visited  him  in 
1842.  “  A  short,  brisk,  cheery  old  man,  then  seventy-one, 
came  into  the  room  with  a  spry  step.  He  wore  a  suit 
of  black,  with  old-fashioned  dress  ruffles,  and  a  high 
cravat  that  looked  as  if  it  choked  him.  His  complexion 
was  fresh,  and  snowy  hair  crowned  a  noble  forehead.  We 
chatted  about  America,  and  I  told  him  that  in  all  our 
churches  his  hymns  were  great  favorites.  I  unfortu¬ 
nately  happened  to  mention  that  when  lately  in  Glasgow 
I  had  gone  to  hear  the  Rev.  Robert  Montgomery,  the  au¬ 
thor  of  *  Satan,’  and  other  poems.  It  was  this  4  Satan 
Montgomery  ’  whom  Macaulay  had  scalped  with  merci¬ 
less  criticism  in  the  Edinburgh  Review.  The  mention  of 
his  name  aroused  the  old  poet’s  ire.  ‘  Would  you  believe 


i88 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


it?’  he  exclaimed  indignantly,  ‘they  attribute  some  of 
that  fellow’s  performances  to  me,  and  lately  a  lady  wrote 
me  in  reference  to  one  of  his  most  pompous  poems,  and 
said  it  was  the  best  that  I  had  ever  written !  ’  ” 

The  poet  (James,  not  Robert)  had  arranged  to  spend 
the  Easter  of  1854  with  his  brethren  at  Fulneck,  was  un¬ 
able  to  go,  and  on  April  30  was  dead.  He  was  buried 
with  such  a  funeral  as  Sheffield  had  never  seen,  and  in 
the  years  following  two  of  his  friends  with  great  de¬ 
votion  but  less  judgment  published  a  biography  extend¬ 
ing  to  no  less  than  seven  volumes. 

MONTGOMERY  AS  POET  AND  HYMN  WRITER 

It  is  just  as  well  that  a  popular  poet  should  die  before 
.  his  reputation  begins  to  fade,  and  Montgomery’s  had 
lasted  a  good  while.  The  first  of  his  poems  to  catch  the 
public  ear  was  his  Wanderer  in  Switzerland  of  1806,  of 
which  three  editions  were  called  for.  Volume  after  vol¬ 
ume  followed,  the  series  closing  with  the  long  poem  of 
The  Pelican  Island  of  1826  and  the  short  pieces  collected 
in  The  Poet’s  Portfolio  of  1835.  They  all  appealed  to  a 
large  public,  mostly  the  religious  public  who  valued  such 
pure  sentiments  in  the  vesture  of  verse  they  could  read 
and  understand.  But  the  longer  poems  have  found  no 
place  in  English  literature,  and  the  anthologies  preserve 
none  of  his  lyrics  except  a  few  hymns.  And  this  is  just 
as  it  ought  to  be.  In  his  poetic  work  Montgomery  mis¬ 
took  the  easy  flow  of  rhetorical  or  sentimental  verse  for 
poetry.  But  his  hymn  writing  was  a  thing  apart,  and  in 
the  best  of  his  hymns  he  made  no  mistake  of  any  kind. 
He  understood  exactly  what  to  aim  at,  and  he  is  one  of 
“  the  little  masters  ”  in  the  art  of  hymn  writing. 


HAIL  TO  THE  LORD’S  ANOINTED  189 

As  early  as  1822  Montgomery  gathered  his  versions  of 
Psalms,  including  the  one  now  before  us,  in  his  Songs  of 
Zion.  He  printed  many  of  his  hymns  in  a  collection 
called  The  Christian  Psalmist,  in  1825;  and  at  the  last 
gathered  up  the  hymns  of  a  lifetime  in  the  Original 
Hymns  of  1853.  He  wrote  four  hundred  in  all,  of  which 
not  less  than  a  hundred  have  had  a  part  in  the  worship 
of  some  branch  of  the  Church. 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

Many  have  regarded  this  as  the  best  of  all,  and  at  the 
present  time  it  is  found  in  more  hymn  books  than  any¬ 
thing  else  of  Montgomery’s.  And  it  has  something  of  a 
story. 

It  was  written  to  be  sung  at  a  Christmas  festival  of 
1821,  at  one  of  the  Moravian  settlements  in  England, 
Fulneck  probably.  Which  reminds  us  that  Montgomery 
was  a  Moravian  all  his  life,  though  he  did  not  formally 
resume  his  birthright  membership  until  his  forty-third 
birthday.  In  January,  1822,  he  inclosed  a  copy  of  the 
hymn  in  a  letter  to  a  South  Sea  missionary,  suggesting 
that  the  isles  afar  are  to  share  the  glories  of  the  Messianic 
reign.  In  April  of  that  year  it  was  recited  by  the  author 
at  a  great  Methodist  missionary  meeting  at  Liverpool, 
under  rather  striking  circumstances.  The  lights  went 
out  while  he  was  speaking,  a  crash  resounded  from  a  seat 
back  broken  by  the  crowd,  and  it  was  uncertain  what 
might  happen.  The  chairman  called  out,  “  There  is  still 
light  within.”  The  speaker  took  his  cue,  proceeded  not 
without  agitation,  “  concluding  with  the  full  blaze  of  the 
renovated  illumination  ”  by  reciting  his  “  Hail  to  the 
Lord’s  Anointed.”  And  we  can  imagine  that  it  was  not 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


190 

spoken  or  heard  without  a  perceptible  thrill.  Dr.  Adam 
Clarke,  who  presided  at  the  meeting,  was  so  impressed 
that  he  secured  a  copy,  and  in  1822  appended  the  hymn 
to  his  notes  on  the  Seventy-second  Psalm  in  his  now 
famous  Commentary  on  the  Bible ,  with  a  special  note 
calling  attention  to  its  excellence;  which  no  doubt  con¬ 
tributed  a  good  deal  to  the  hymn’s  success. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  In  Montgomery’s  Original  Hymns  this  bears  the 
title, 

“  The  Reign  of  Christ  on  Earth.  —  Ps.  lxxii,” 

and  it  is  of  course  a  free  rendering  of  that  Psalm.  The 
Seventy-second  Psalm  is  the  vision  of  a  great  king  who 
brings  righteousness  and  peace,  redresses  human  wrongs, 
and  extends  his  rule  to  the  world’s  end.  The  Old  Testa¬ 
ment  seems  to  apply  the  Psalm  to  Solomon’s  reign,  and 
the  New  Testament  does  not  apply  it  to  Christ  as  Mes¬ 
sianic  King.  The  Early  Church  did,  and  chose  it  as  the 
special  Psalm  for  the  Epiphany  season.  Now  just  what 
did  they  mean  by  that  ? 

The  Epiphany  (January  6)  follows  so  soon  after 
Christmas  that  many  people  think  of  them  as  one.  It 
really  commemorates  the  visit  of  the  Wise  Men,  and 
when  the  Church  put  the  Psalm  in  that  connection  it 
meant  to  say  that  it  foretells  the  homage  of  the  nations 
to  Christ,  of  which  the  visit  of  the  Wise  Men  was  the 
beginning.  What  the  Church  did  then  was  to  choose  the 
Seventy-second  as  its  special  foreign  missionary  Psalm. 

The  nineteenth  century  Churches  have  done  just  the 
same  thing  with  Montgomery’s  rendering  of  that  Psalm. 


vw 


AN  AUTOGRAPH  HYMN  OF  MONTGOMERY 


192 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


They  have  always  regarded  it  as  a  foreign  missionary 
hymn,  a  trumpet  call  to  advance  toward  the  conquest  of 
the  world,  a  blessed  assurance  of  victory.  We  may  be 
quite  sure  that  the  author  so  intended  it.  He  wrote  in 
the  early  glow  of  the  new  zeal  for  foreign  missions  that 
dawned  on  England,  and  which  so  moved  his  heart.  Is 
the  Church  justified  in  making  this  hymn  a  song  of  the 
final  triumph  of  foreign  missions;  and  just  what  bearing 
upon  this  question  has  the  old  saying,  “  My  kingdom  is 
not  of  this  world  ?  ” 

2.  There  are  no  differences  of  text  in  this  hymn  as 
printed  in  Songs  of  Zion  in  1822  and  in  Original  Hymns, 
thirty-one  years  later.  The  fact  is  worth  noting,  as  a 
number  of  editors  have  made  changes,  especially  in  the 
last  line.  But  as  Montgomery  printed  the  hymn,  there 
were  eight  verses  of  eight  lines  each ;  not  too  many  for  a 
proper  presentation  of  the  Psalm  but  too  many  for  a  con¬ 
gregational  hymn  book ;  so  that  each  editor  has  to  de¬ 
cide  on  his  own  abridgment.  That  in  The  Hymnal  re¬ 
vised  is  perhaps  as  effective  as  any;  the  best  of  the 
omitted  verses,  the  original  second,  is  rather  a  loss : 

He  comes  with  succour  speedy, 

To  those  who  suffer  wrong; 

To  help  the  poor  and  needy, 

And  bid  the  weak  be  strong: 

To  give  them  songs  for  sighing, 

Their  darkness  turn  to  light; 

Whose  souls,  condemn’d  and  dying, 

Were  precious  in  His  sight. 

3.  What  is  the  meaning  of  “  For  Him  shall  prayer 
unceasing,”  in  the  third  verse,  regarded  by  some  as  an 
improper  expression?  Does  the  fact  that  the  Seventy- 


HAIL  TO  THE  LORD’S  ANOINTED 


193 

second  Psalm  is  itself  a  prayer  for  the  king  bear  upon  the 
questioned  propriety  of  the  expression  ? 

4.  Another  and  equally  well-known  missionary  hymn, 
“  Jesus  shall  reign  where’er  the  sun,”  is  also  a  version  of 
the  Seventy-second  Psalm,  written  in  Dr.  Watts’s  very 
best  style.  And  it  may  be  interesting  to  compare  the 
work  of  two  excellent  hymn  writers  dealing  with  the  same 
subject  matter  a  century  apart.  Dr.  Watts  would  prob¬ 
ably  have  regarded  Montgomery’s  meter  and  rhythm  as 
a  bit  jaunty  for  a  hymn. 


XVII 

JUST  AS  I  AM,  WITHOUT  ONE  PLEA 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 


1  Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea 

But  that  Thy  blood  was  shed  for  me, 

And  that  Thou  bidd’st  me  come  to  Thee, 

O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come. 

2  Just  as  I  am,  and  waiting  not 
To  rid  my  soul  of  one  dark  blot, 

To  Thee,  whose  blood  can  cleanse  each  spot, 
O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come. 

3  Just  as  I  am,  though  tossed  about 
With  many  a  conflict,  many  a  doubt, 
Fightings  and  fears  within,  without, 

O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come. 

4  Just  as  I  am,  poor,  wretched,  blind; 

Sight,  riches,  healing  of  the  mind, 

Yea,  all  I  need,  in  Thee  to  find, 

O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come. 

5  Just  as  I  am!  Thou  wilt  receive, 

Wilt  welcome,  pardon,  cleanse,  relieve; 
Because  Thy  promise  I  believe, 

O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come. 

6  Just  as  I  am!  Thy  love  unknown 
Has  broken  every  barrier  down; 

Now,  to  be  Thine,  yea,  Thine  alone, 

O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come. 

Charlotte  Elliott,  circa  1834 


194 


JUST  AS  I  AM,  WITHOUT  ONE  PLEA  195 

Note:  The  text  is  taken  from  the  1841  edition  of  The  Invalid’s 
Hymn  Book.  The  only  changes  are  (1)  In  punctuation:  by  elim¬ 
inating  an  exclamation  point  at  the  end  of  each  verse;  and  also 
dashes,  the  position  and  number  of  which  vary  in  Miss  Elliott’s 
printings  of  her  hymn.  Her  final  use  of  them  was  to  make  a 
light  parenthesis  of  all  between  “Just  as  I  am”  and  “  O  Lamb  of 
God”:  in  verse  1  for  example,  “Just  as  I  am  —  ”.  ...  “  Come  to 
Thee  — .”  (2)  In  text:  In  1841  verse  3,  1.  3,  reads,  “Fightings 

within,  and  fears  without,”  within  quotation  marks.  Quoting,  no 
doubt,  John  Newton  (from  memory)  and  discovering  verbal  in¬ 
accuracy,  she  changed  the  line  to  read  (as  in  Hours  of  Sorrow, 
ed.  1849,  and  her  collected  poems)  as  given  above. 

In  these  studies  we  have  had  occasion  more  than  once 
to  refer  to  the  Evangelical  Party  in  the  Church  of  Eng¬ 
land.  It  was  the  succession  of  clergy  and  laity  who  con¬ 
tinued  to  believe  the  doctrines  of  the  Evangelical  or 
Calvinistic  side  of  the  eighteenth  century  revival,  and 
who  carried  out  its  principles  in  their  parish  work,  as 
far  as  they  could.  That  Evangelical  succession  in  the 
Church  of  England  has  never  failed  yet.  Its  character¬ 
istic  might  be  expressed  broadly  by  saying  that  it  puts 
the  gospel  first  and  the  Church  second,  so  that  it  is  gen¬ 
erally  called  the  Low  Church  Party. 

There  never  was  anybody  more  directly  in  the  line 
of  that  succession  than  Miss  Charlotte  Elliott,  the 
author  of  “  Just  as  I  am.”  It  was  her  heritage  from  a 
line  of  Evangelical  clergymen ;  she  was  born  into  a  home 
that  was  the  center  of  a  prominent  Evangelical  circle; 
she  was  nurtured  in  the  doctrines  not  only  by  her  parents 
but  by  an  uncle  and  two  brothers  who  were  Evangelical 
clergymen ;  and  when  she  began  to  write  hymns  she  took 
her  place  at  once  in  the  succession  of  Evangelical  hymn 
writers,  after  Toplady  and  Newton  and  Cowper.  Her 
hymn,  “  Just  as  I  am,”  is  a  clear  expression  of  what  the 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


196 

Evangelical  Party  believed  as  to  the  doctrine  of  salva¬ 
tion,  and  what  it  stood  for  as  opposing  High  Church  or 
Broad  Church  doctrines.  She  thought  of  the  Church 
simply  as  “  The  Church  of  pardoned  sinners,”  and  it 
was  a  sorrow  to  her  to  see  one  and  another  friend  or 
relative  turn  to  what  we  call  High  Church  views  but 
which  she  used  to  characterize  as  “  Puseyite  errors.” 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  “JUST  AS  I  AM” 

Charlotte  Elliott’s  parents  were  gentlefolk  in  very 
comfortable  circumstances,  who  had  homes  at  Clapham 
and  Brighton,  and  she  was  born  at  Brighton,  March  17, 
1789.  From  such  memorials  of  her  secluded  life  as  have 
been  printed,  one  gathers  that  she  had  been  more  or  less 
of  an  invalid  from  quite  early  years,  but  that  there  was 
a  short  period  when  she  could  take  her  part  in  such  social 
life  as  the  Evangelical  principles  of  that  time  allowed. 
In  1821  she  had  a  distressing  illness  from  which  there 
seems  to  have  been  no  real  recovery,  though  for  some 
years  at  least  the  summers  brought  enough  relief  to  per¬ 
mit  of  easy  traveling  and  visits  to  friends. 

In  1822  she  fell  under  the  influence  of  Dr.  Caesar 
Malan,  a  pastor  from  Geneva,  while  her  spirit  was  tossed 
about  with  the  “  fightings  and  fears  within,  without  ” 
60  natural  to  her  condition  and  prospects ;  and  under  his 
ministries  of  healing  her  faith  took  a  firmer  grip  and  her 
heart  found  peace.  It  was  well  indeed:  how  else  could 
she  have  borne  so  nobly  what  was  before  her,  fifty  years 
of  invalidism,  with  much  suffering  and  frequent  periods 
of  utter  prostration  and  helplessness? 

The  printed  memorials  of  Miss  Elliott  deal  very 
frankly  with  her  spiritual  secrets,  but  do  not,  so  far  as 


CHARLOTTE  ELLIOTT 


1 98  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

the  writer  has  observed,  disclose  the  nature  of  the  phys¬ 
ical  ailment  from  which  she  suffered.  Hers  was  the  day 
when  gentle  womanhood  was  veiled  in  “  delicacy,”  and 
doubtless  any  explanation  of  her  bodily  trouble  would 
have  been  regarded  as  indelicate.  It  does  not  matter  now, 
except  to  students  of  the  reactions  of  body  and  spirit. 
What  matters  are  those  fifty  years  of  patience  and  even 
of  service. 

It  has  been  objected  against  Miss  Elliott’s  familiar 
hymn,  “  My  God  and  Father,  while  I  stray,”  with  its  re¬ 
frain,  “  Thy  will  be  done,”  that  its  acceptance  of  God’s 
will  for  our  lives  is  too  passive,  that  it  stops  with  resig¬ 
nation  and  does  not  go  forward  to  cooperation.  If  the 
objection  is  just,  and  perhaps  it  is,  then  the  hymn  fails 
to  express  her  own  ideal  and  practice.  For  the  ideal  of 
life  which  this  elect  lady  set  up  in  her  heart  included 
not  only  a  purpose  to  glorify  God  by  her  patience  and 
pluck  but  also  to  make  use  of  such  gifts  of  service  as 
she  had ;  especially  a  literary  gift  which  in  girlhood  had 
expressed  itself  in  humorous  verse,  but  now  in  religious 
poetry  and  hymns  of  a  very  tender  and  often  beautiful 
quality. 

We  do  not  know  how  soon  she  began  to  exercise  her 
talent.  A  number  of  her  hymns  appear  in  a  collection 
her  brother  printed  in  1835.  Her  sister  says  it  was  a 
correspondent,  the  Rev.  Hugh  White,  who  set  her  the 
congenial  task  of  rearranging  a  little  collection  of  hymns 
for  the  sick  room  made  by  a  Miss  Kiernan,  of  Dublin, 
during  her  last  illness  in  1834.  To  this,  published  as  The 
Invalid’s  Hymn  Book,  Miss  Elliott  contributed  in  all 
more  than  a  hundred  of  her  own  composition.  The  little 
book  was  warmly  welcomed  and  often  reprinted.  It  was 
followed  in  1836  by  her  Hours  of  Sorrow,  from  a  presen- 


A  NOTE  ON  THE  FLYLEAF  OF  A  COPY  OF  “  HOURS  OF  SORROW 


200 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


tation  copy  of  which  the  autograph  note  here  reproduced 
is  taken;  by  Morning  and  Evening  Hymns  for  a  Week 
in  1839;  and  after  a  long  interval,  by  Thoughts  in  verse 
on  sacred  Subjects  in  1869.  Her  own  hours  of  sorrow 
ceased  at  Brighton  on  September  22,  1871. 

She  had  indeed  learned  in  suffering  what  she  taught  in 
song.  All  the  more  welcome,  therefore,  are  the  glimpses 
we  catch  in  her  letters  of  the  compensations  she  herself 
found  in  her  hymn  writing,  —  the  human  pleasure  of  suc¬ 
cess  and  the  spiritual  satisfaction  of  doing  good:  “It 
will  be  a  real  delight  to  me  to  send  you  a  copy  of  the 
Invalid’s  Hymn  Book.  I  have  just  had  a  copy  bound  for 
dear  Queen  Adelaide,  and  shall  be  much  pleased  if  I  find 
she  likes  it.”  And  this,  a  year  later :  “  I  have  now  before 
me  a  few  supplemental  hymns  for  the  third  edition  of 
the  Invalid’s  Hymn  Book,  which  I  have  just  corrected, 
and  of  which  the  last  has  sold  so  quickly.  The  fifth  edi¬ 
tion  of  the  Week’s  Hymns  is  now  all  sold ;  and  Seeley  tells 
me  the  Hours  of  Sorrow  sell  well,  so  that  I  feel  as  if  I 
ought  to  strive  to  finish  and  continue  these  little  works 
1  which  are  given  me  to  do.’  ” 

THE  “TRUE  HISTORY”  OF  THE  HYMN 

The  annals  of  a  sick  room  are  obscure,  and  in  Miss 
Elliott’s  case  it  is  not  always  easy  to  get  the  date  of  the 
writing  or  even  of  the  first  publication  of  a  given  hymn. 
It  is  so  with  the  one  before  us,  of  which  no  manuscript 
is  known  to  exist.  Most  books  that  deal  with  it  repeat 
the  story  that  connects  it  with  the  ministrations  of  Dr. 
Malan  to  Miss  Elliott  in  1822.  They  even  lay  it  out  on 
the  precise  lines  of  a  responsive  service.  The  pastor  ex¬ 
horts  the  invalid  to  come  to  Christ.  She  answers,  “  How 


JUST  AS  I  AM,  WITHOUT  ONE  PLEA 


201 


can  I  come?  ”  He  tells  her,  “  Come  just  as  you  are  ”; 
and  she  responds,  “  Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea.”  For 
the  truth  of  all  this  there  seems  to  be  no  evidence  what¬ 
ever,  and  no  amount  of  repetition  adds  anything  to  its 
veracity.  Truth  indeed  is  a  shy  bird,  and  many  good 
sportsmen  fail  to  bag  it. 

The  Rev.  Handley  C.  G.  Moule,  afterwards  Bishop  of 
Durham,  printed  in  The  Record  of  October  16,  1897,  the 
“  true  history  ”  of  the  hymn,  of  which  he  said,  “  as  Miss 
Elliott’s  nephew  by  marriage  I  happen  to  know  the  pre¬ 
cise  circumstances  of  its  composition.”  The  bishop 
stamps  as  “  inaccurate  ”  the  stories  that  connect  the 
hymn  in  any  way  with  her  conversion  and  does  not  think 
she  could  point  to  any  early  crisis  of  conversion.  He  al¬ 
ludes  to  the  spiritual  comfort  Dr.  Malan  brought  her, 
and  goes  on : 

“  But  ill  health  still  beset  her  ...  it  often  caused 
her  the  peculiar  pain  of  a  seeming  uselessness  in  her  life 
while  the  circle  round  her  was  full  of  unresting  service¬ 
ableness  for  God.  Such  a  time  of  trial  marked  the  year 
1834,  when  she  was  forty-five  years  old,  and  living  in 
Westfield  Lodge,  Brighton.  .  .  .  Her  brother,  the  Rev. 
H.  V.  Elliott,  had  not  long  before  conceived  the  plan  of 
St.  Mary’s  Hall,  at  Brighton  —  a  school  designed  to  give, 
at  nominal  cost,  a  high  education  to  the  daughters  of 
clergymen.  ...  In  aid  of  St.  Mary’s  Hall  there  was  to 
be  held  a  bazaar.  .  .  .  Westfield  Lodge  was  all  astir; 
every  member  of  the  large  circle  was  occupied  morning 
and  night  in  the  preparations,  with  the  one  exception  of 
the  ailing  sister  Charlotte  —  as  full  of  eager  interest  as 
any  of  them,  but  physically  fit  for  nothing.  The  night 
before  the  bazaar  she  was  kept  wakeful  by  distressing 
thoughts  of  her  apparent  uselessness ;  and  these  thoughts 


202 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


passed  —  by  a  transition  easy  to  imagine  —  into  a  spir¬ 
itual  conflict,  till  she  questioned  the  reality  of  her  whole 
spiritual  life,  and  wondered  whether  it  were  anything 
better  than  an  illusion  of  the  emotions,  an  illusion  ready 
to  be  sorrowfully  dissolved. 

“  The  next  day,  the  busy  day  of  the  bazaar,  she  lay 
upon  her  sofa.  .  .  .  The  troubles  of  the  night  came  back 
upon  her  with  such  force  that  she  felt  they  must  be  met 
and  conquered  in  the  grace  of  God.  She  gathered  up  in 
her  soul  the  great  certainties,  not  of  her  emotions,  but 
of  her  salvation :  her  Lord,  his  power,  his  promise.  And 
taking  pen  and  paper  from  the  table  she  deliberately  set 
down  in  writing,  for  her  own  comfort,  ‘  the  formulae  of 
her  faith.’  Hers  was  a  heart  which  always  tended  to 
express  its  depths  in  verse.  So  in  verse  she  restated  to 
herself  the  gospel  of  pardon,  peace,  and  heaven.  ‘  Prob¬ 
ably  without  difficulty  or  long  pause  ’  she  wrote  the 
hymn.  .  .  . 

“  As  the  day  wore  on,  her  sister-in-law,  Mrs.  H.  V. 
Elliott,  came  in  to  see  her,  and  bring  news  of  the 
work.  She  read  the  hymn,  and  asked  (she  well  might) 
for  a  copy.  So  it  first  stole  out  from  that  quiet  room 
into  the  world.” 

With  this  story  of  the  hymn  agrees  in  all  particulars 
an  account  furnished  about  1902  to  Mr.  Francis  A.  Jones 
by  “  Mrs.  Synge,  a  niece  of  the  authoress.”  And  it  is 
interesting  to  note  that  the  title-pages  of  the  various 
editions  of  Miss  Elliott’s  Hymns  for  a  Week  bear  the 
inscription :  “  Sold  for  the  benefit  of  St.  Mary’s  Hall, 
Brighton.” 

Bishop  Moule  says  the  hymn  was  written  in  1834, 
and  nobody  is  in  a  position  to  question  that  date.  But 
the  time  and  place  of  its  first  printing  are  equally  inter- 


JUST  AS  I  AM,  WITHOUT  ONE  PLEA 


203 

esting,  and  on  these  points  he  is  not  convincing.  He 
says  it  appeared  in  the  1834  edition  of  The  Invalid’s 
Hymn  Book ;  and  that  “  in  1835  it  was  printed,  unknown 
to  the  writer  and  without  her  name,  as  a  leaflet ;  one  of 
the  first  copies  was  given  to  her  by  a  friend  with  the 
words,  ‘  I  am  sure  this  will  please  you.’  ”  Dr.  Julian 
a  high  authority,  writing  with  the  1834  book  before  him, 
says  the  hymn  is  not  there,  and  was  first  printed  in  the 
edition  of  1836.  Dr.  Telford,  a  careful  student  of  Wes¬ 
leyan  hymns,  remarks  that  the  hymn  was  printed  a 
second  time  in  1836  in  Miss  Elliott’s  Hours  of  Sorrow ; 
but  it  is  not  found  in  the  writer’s  copy  of  that  date. 
Finally,  the  writer’s  Canadian  friend,  James  Edmund 
Jones,  Esq.,  who  published  a  carefully  annotated  edition 
of  The  Book  of  Common  Praise  in  1909,  says  there  that 
“Just  as  I  am  ”  is  not  in  The  Invalid’s  Hymn  Book  of 
1836,  but  in  the  edition  of  1841  for  the  first  time.  All 
that  the  present  writer  can  contribute  at  first  hand  to 
this  hotchpotch  is  to  say  that  the  earliest  printing  of  the 
hymn  he  has  seen  with  his  own  eyes  is  in  the  1841  edition 
of  The  Invalid’s  Hymn  Book. 

Whatever  may  be  the  exact  date  of  publication,  it 
marks  the  beginning  of  a  wide  circulation,  of  a  wonderful 
career  of  usefulness.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Elliott  (he  who 
founded  St.  Mary’s  Hall)  thought  his  sister  had  done 
more  by  a  single  hymn  than  he  had  accomplished  “  in 
the  course  of  a  long  ministry.”  There  is  hardly  an 
evangelist  without  some  tale  to  tell  illustrating  the 
power  of  this  hymn.  Some  such  testimonies  reached  the 
authoress  herself.  Probably  the  one  that  pleased  her 
most  was  the  grateful  letter  from  the  husband  of  Dora 
Wordsworth,  the  “  one  and  matchless  daughter  ”  of  the 
great  poet.  “  Now  my  hymn,”  he  reports  that  sufferer 


204 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


as  saying  every  morning  of  the  last  two  months  of  her 
life ;  “  and  she  would  often  and  often  repeat  it  after  me, 
line  for  line,  many  times  in  the  day  and  night.  I  do 
not  think  Mr.  Wordsworth  could  bear  to  have  it  repeated 
in  his  presence,  but  he  is  not  the  less  sensible  of  the 
solace  it  gave  his  one  and  matchless  daughter.” 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

i.  It  is  interesting  to  find  two  evangelical-hearted 
bishops  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal  Church  praising  this 
hymn  in  practically  identical  terms  as  shrining  the  heart 
of  Christ’s  gospel.  Bishop  Stevens  of  Pennsylvania, 
writing  a  preface  for  an  American  reprint  of  Hymns  for 
a  Week,  says  of  it :  “  That  hymn  is  the  metrical  com¬ 
pendium  of  the  Gospel.  It  is  so  simple  that  a  child  can 
understand  it,  so  truthful  that  the  heart  taught  of  the 
Spirit  instinctively  approves  it,  so  fervent  that  the  soul 
is  warmed  into  glowing  ardor  by  its  burning  words,  so 
grand  and  comprehensive  that  the  departing  saint  de¬ 
lights  to  use  it  as  he  commits  his  blood-washed  soul  into 
the  hands  of  his  faithful  Creator.”  Bishop  Mcllvaine 
of  Ohio  tells  us  that  in  i860  he  resumed  a  custom  of 
gathering  the  clergy  around  the  chancel,  at  the  close  of 
the  annual  Convention,  for  some  parting  words,  a  hymn 
and  extempore  prayer.  “  I  had  chosen  [‘  Just  as  I  am  ’] 
to  be  sung  and  had  it  printed  on  cards;  and  I  have 
adopted  it  for  all  time  to  come,  as  long  as  I  shall  be  here, 
as  my  hymn,  always  to  be  sung  on  such  occasions,  and 
always  to  the  same  tune.  That  hymn  contains  my  relig¬ 
ion,  my  theology,  my  hope.  It  has  been  my  ministry 
to  preach  just  what  it  contains.  In  health  it  expresses 
all  my  refuge ;  in  death  I  desire  that  I  may  know  noth- 


JUST  AS  I  AM,  WITHOUT  ONE  PLEA 


205 

ing  else,  for  support  and  consolation,  but  what  it  con¬ 
tains.  When  I  am  gone,  I  wish  to  be  remembered  in 
association  with  that  hymn.” 

In  Miss  Elliott’s  books  the  hymn  was  printed  beneath 
the  text,  “  Him  that  cometh  to  me  I  will  in  no  wise  cast 
out,”  and  it  is  to  be  studied  in  relation  to  that  text.  It 
may  be  worth  while  to  make  an  analysis  of  the  hymn,  to 
see  just  what  is  added  verse  by  verse  as  to  the  terms  of 
the  gospel.  That  done,  one  would  be  in  a  position  to 
estimate  a  seventh  verse  added  afterwards  by  the  author¬ 
ess,  as  found  in  the  writer’s  copy  of  the  1849  edition  of 
Hours  of  Sorrow: 

Just  as  I  am  —  of  that  free  love, 

“  The  breadth,  length,  depth,  and  height  ”  to  prove, 

Here  for  a  season,  then  above  — 

O  Lamb  of  God,  I  come! 

2.  There  are  some  striking  phrases  in  the  hymn.  Prin¬ 
cipal  Alexander  Whyte,  who  liked  to  lecture  on  it,  used 
to  dwell  on  the  opening  u  Just  as  I  am,”  as  a  stroke  of 
evangelical  genius.  “  A  better  selected  word  is  not  in 
all  the  world.”  But  why?  He  also  contrasted  the  com¬ 
ing  for  “  healing  of  the  mind  ”  with  Macbeth’s  “  Canst 
thou  not  minister  to  a  mind  diseas’d?”  (Act  v, 
scene  iii). 

The  line, 

“  Fightings  and  fears  within,  without,” 

has  a  parallel  in  a  good  many  other  hymns.  We  have 
noted : 

Wars  without,  and  Fights  within.  John  Cennick,  1741. 

Fightings  without,  and  fears  within.  John  Newton,  1779, 

By  war  without,  and  fears  within.  John  Newton,  1779. 

Foes  without  and  fears  within.  J.  D.  Burns,  1857. 

Fightings  without,  and  fears  each  day  within.  H.  Bonar,  1879. 


206  studies  of  familiar  hymns 

Are  these  writers  quoting  from  one  another,  or  is 
there  some  text  of  Scripture  appropriated  by  each  in 
turn? 

3.  Of  the  two  tunes  to  these  words  in  The  Hymnal 
revised ,  Bradbury’s  appeared  in  The  Mendelssohn  Col¬ 
lection  of  tunes,  edited  by  Thomas  Hastings  and  himself 
in  1849.  Bradbury  was  a  pupil  of  Lowell  Mason,  and 
his  tunes  mark  the  transition  from  Mason’s  simple  but 
dignified  music  to  the  livelier  “  gospel  hymns  ”  that  fol¬ 
lowed.  He  “  won  boundless  popularity  for  light  tunes  in 
the  Sunday  schools.”  Few  of  his  church  tunes  survive. 

Familiar  as  is  the  association  of  his  “  Woodworth  ” 
with  “  Just  as  I  am,”  many  will  think  such  words  worthy 
of  a  better  tune.  Whether  Sir  Joseph  Barnby  has  fur¬ 
nished  it  in  his  setting  is  open  to  debate.  He  was  a 
much  more  accomplished  musician  than  Bradbury,  with 
a  lovely  gift  for  melody,  and  greatly  under  the  influence 
of  Gounod.  Many  of  his  tunes  are  in  the  four-part-song 
style  and  seemed  effeminate  to  lovers  of  solid  old  Psalm 
tunes. 

The  number  of  good  tunes  adapted  to  the  peculiar 
meter  of  “  Just  as  I  am  ”  is  rather  limited ;  but  a  repe¬ 
tition  of  the  final  “  I  come  ”  transfers  the  hymn  to  the 
long-meter  class,  and  once  there,  the  choice  of  tunes  be¬ 
comes  almost  boundless. 


XVIII 

I  HEARD  THE  VOICE  OF  JESUS  SAY 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say, 

“Come  unto  Me  and  rest; 

Lay  down,  thou  weary  one,  lay  down 
Thy  head  upon  My  breast.” 

I  came  to  Jesus  as  I  was, 

Weary  and  worn  and  sad, 

I  found  in  Him  a  resting-place, 

And  He  has  made  me  glad. 

2  I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say, 

“  Behold,  I  freely  give 
The  living  water;  thirsty  one, 

Stoop  down  and  drink,  and  live.” 

I  came  to  Jesus,  and  I  drank 
Of  that  life-giving  stream; 

My  thirst  was  quenched,  my  soul  revived, 

And  now  I  live  in  Him. 

3  I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say, 

“I  am  this  dark  world’s  Light; 

Look  unto  Me,  thy  morn  shall  rise, 

And  all  thy  day  be  bright.” 

I  looked  to  Jesus,  and  I  found 
In  Him  my  Star,  my  Sun; 

And  in  that  light  of  life  I’ll  walk, 

Till  traveling  days  are  done. 

Rev.  Horatius  Bonar,  1846 

Note:  The  text  is  taken  from  Hymns  of  Faith  and  Hope  (the 
first  series),  where  it  bears  the  title,  “The  Voice  from  Galilee.”  The 
quotation  marks  indicating  the  words  of  Christ  are  not  given  there, 
and  for  “  quenched  ”  the  reading  is  “  quench’d.” 


207 


208  studies  of  familiar  hymns 

One  sunny  morning  in  the  summer  of  1887  the  writer 
was  making  a  call  upon  the  Rev.  Dr.  William  G.  Blaikie 
at  his  home  in  the  city  of  Edinburgh.  In  the  course  of 
it  Dr.  Blaikie  drew  him  to  the  front  window,  and,  point- 


HORATIUS  BONAR 

ing  to  a  figure  on  the  opposite  pavement,  said,  “  That 
is  Horatius  Bonar  ” ;  adding,  “  I  thought  you  would  like 
to  see  him,”  or  some  words  to  that  effect.  It  was  indeed 
a  group  rather  than  a  figure  to  which  Dr.  Blaikie  pointed. 
In  the  center  was  a  venerable  man  in  clerical  black, 


I  HEARD  THE  VOICE  OF  JESUS  SAY 


209 

bowed  down  with  years  and  tottering  in  infirmity,  with  an 
arm  thrown  across  the  shoulders  of  an  attendant  on 
either  side,  who  had  apparently  no  easy  task  to  keep 
him  upon  his  feet.  And  this  central  figure,  with  the 
large  frame  and  head,  and  the  white  hair  and  whiskers 
around  the  fresh  skin  of  the  face,  having  even  in  extreme 
weakness  that  look  of  nobility  which  seems  the  peculiar 
characteristic  of  the  Scottish  type  of  old  age  —  this 
venerable  figure  was  Horatius  Bonar,  the  author  of  “  I 
heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say,”  and  of  many  another  hymn 
familiar  in  our  churches. 

THE  GREATEST  OF  SCOTTISH  HYMN  WRITERS 

When  one  recalls  the  fact  that  his  hymn,  “  I  lay  my 
sins  on  Jesus,”  was  written  before  1837,  what  could  be 
less  surprising  than  finding  the  Bonar  of  1887  venerable 
and  broken?  He  was  then  in  the  last  years  of  a  long 
life.  His  latest  appearance  in  public  was  in  the  follow¬ 
ing  April,  although  he  lingered  here  until  the  thirty- 
first  of  July,  1889.  Born  December  19,  1808,  in  Edin¬ 
burgh,  where  his  father  was  second  solicitor  of  Excise 
and  a  ruling  elder  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  the  out¬ 
ward  course  of  his  life  was  peculiarly  quiet  and  unevent¬ 
ful.  Its  one  striking  event  was  his  secession  from  the 
established  Church  of  Scotland.  He  had  finished  his 
studies  at  the  University  of  Edinburgh,  had  gone  into 
the  ministry,  and  been  ordained  as  minister  of  the  North 
Parish  in  the  border  town  of  Kelso.  Just  then  there 
was  a  good  deal  of  unrest  throughout  the  Church,  caused 
by  the  action  of  “  patrons  ”  who  held  as  their  property 
the  right  of  naming  the  parish  minister,  and  only  too 
often  put  in  their  nominee  against  the  vehement  protest 


210 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


of  the  congregation.  This  led  to  the  great  Disruption  of 
1843,  and  Bonar  with  many  of  his  friends  was  among 
the  four  hundred  and  fifty-one  ministers  who  withdrew 
from  the  Establishment  and  formed  “  the  Free  Church 
of  Scotland.” 

Most  controversies  are  capable  of  being  adjusted  in 
time  and  schism  is  never  lovely.  But  these  men  were 
conscientious  and  many  of  them  were  heroic  in  thus 
renouncing  their  only  means  of  support.  Mr.  Bonar 
and  his  parish  were  exceptional  in  being  able  to  retain 
their  property,  and  he  continued  at  Kelso  as  the  devoted 
pastor  of  the  church,  now  “  Free,”  until  1866. 

Some  have  wondered  that  one  so  gifted  should  spend 
the  greater  part  of  his  ministry  in  the  obscure  country¬ 
side.  Invitations  to  go  elsewhere  were  not  wanting.  But 
he  was  absorbed  in  his  pastoral  work  and  in  evangelistic 
labors  which  took  in  the  whole  Border  country.  “  Here 
I  am,  and  here  I  must  remain  till  my  Lord  come  to  me  or 
for  me,”  he  wrote  to  a  church  at  Newcastle;  and  he 
heard  no  clear  call  until,  in  1866,  the  opportunity  came 
to  found  a  new  church  in  his  native  city.  He  was  a  man 
set  apart.  He  hated  publicity  and  counted  recognition 
and  honors  from  men’s  hands  a  very  empty  thing.  He 
was  like  a  pilgrim  and  stranger  on  the  earth,  anxious 
to  make  it  better  for  his  passing  through,  but  homesick 
for  heaven.  He  lived  with  God,  the  humblest  of  His 
children,  and  had  only  one  great  aim  in  his  life  —  to 
bring  men  to  Christ. 

Those  quiet  years  at  Kelso  no  doubt  made  him  what 
he  was  intellectually  and  spiritually.  There  he  carried 
on  his  studies  and  attained  the  culture  that  is  more  than 
scholarship.  But,  as  in  all  he  did,  even  his  studies 
centered  in  Christ.  His  attention  was  turned  to  the 


/  HEARD  THE  VOICE  OF  JESUS  SAY 


211 


interpretation  of  prophecy  and  he  became  an  ardent 
“  premillenarian.”  He  believed  that  our  Lord  was  to 
return  in  person,  soon,  suddenly,  and  with  power;  to 
destroy  antichrist  and  restore  Israel,  and  to  inaugurate 
an  earthly  kingdom  of  a  thousand  years.  The  Advent 
hope  became  an  absorbing  passion.  In  its  light  he  lived 
and  worked,  and  to  spread  it  he  wrote  tracts  and  books, 
and  for  twenty-five  years  edited  The  Quarterly  Journal 
of  Prophecy. 

This  sense  of  detachment  from  the  present  world, 
this  homesickness  for  heaven,  this  hopeful  but  pensive 
expectation  of  the  Second  Coming,  are  behind  his  hymns 
and  make  them  what  they  are.  “  There  is  nobody  like 
Bonar  to  sing  about  heaven,”  exclaims  one  of  the  char¬ 
acters  in  Miss  Phelps’s  Gates  Ajar.  And  it  is  true: 
nobody  since  the  time  of  Bernard  of  Cluny.  His  hymns 
are  like  those  that  came  out  of  the  seclusion  and  other¬ 
worldliness  of  the  medieval  monasteries,  where  the 
monks  sang  of  the  growing  evil  of  the  world  outside,  of 
the  absent  Bridegroom,  and  of  the  glories  of  Jerusalem 
the  golden.  “  What !  ”  said  a  High  Church  lady  at 
Torquay,  on  meeting  a  member  of  Bonar’s  Edinburgh 
congregation:  “Is  Bonar,  the  hymn  writer,  still  alive? 
I  always  understood  he  was  a  medieval  saint.” 

He  was  in  his  fifty-seventh  year  when  he  went  to  Edin¬ 
burgh  to  spend  the  remainder  of  life  in  upbuilding  a  new 
parish.  Largely  under  Dr.  Thomas  Chalmers’  influ¬ 
ence  he  had  entered  the  ministry;  under  Chalmers’ 
leadership  he  had  exchanged  the  established  Church  for 
the  Free ;  and  in  his  regard  that  leader  persisted  as  “  the 
greatest  man  he  had  ever  met.”  He  found  special  pleas¬ 
ure  therefore  in  becoming  first  pastor  of  the  Chalmers 
Memorial  Church.  In  Edinburgh,  as  in  the  Border,  he 


212 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


was  evangelist  as  well  as  pastor,  and  when  Dwight 
L.  Moody  came  to  Scotland,  Bonar  took  an  active  part 
in  his  mission  and  even  wrote  some  hymns  for  Sankey. 
Sankey  had  set  to  music  Tennyson’s  song  from  “  Guine¬ 
vere,”  “  Late,  late,  so  late !  and  dark  the  night  and 
chill!  ”  And,  when  copyright  difficulties  prevented 
its  printing,  Bonar  furnished  a  substitute,  “  ‘  Yet  there 
is  room  ’ :  the  Lamb’s  bright  hall  of  song.” 

In  1883  Dr.  Bonar  was  made  Moderator  of  the  Free 
Church  Assembly.  The  photograph  of  him  here  repro¬ 
duced  showed  (more  clearly  than  a  reproduction  can)  the 
facings  on  the  coat  of  the  court  dress  prescribed  by 
custom  for  a  moderator’s  wear.  His  last  sermon  in  the 
Chalmers  Memorial  was  preached  on  September  n,  1887. 

At  his  funeral  his  assistant,  the  Rev.  J.  M.  Sloan, 
drove  to  the  Canongate  churchyard  in  the  same  car¬ 
riage  with  Principal  Cairns  and  Dr.  Cuyler  of  Brook¬ 
lyn.  The  three  men  fell  to  discussing  their  preferences 
among  Bonar’s  hymns.  One  spoke  for  “  Here,  O  my 
Lord,  I  see  Thee  face  to  face  ” ;  another,  for  “  When  the 
weary,  seeking  rest  ” ;  the  third,  for  “  I  heard  the  voice 
of  Jesus  say.” 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

It  was  the  shortest  of  stories  according  to  Dr.  Bonar. 
“  I  have  nothing  on  record  but  a  little  scrap  of  paper 
without  a  date  and  the  hymn  written  in  pencil.”  But, 
thanks  to  his  son,  we  can  now  do  a  little  better  than  that. 

For  the  year  before  his  ordination  Bonar  was  assistant 
at  St.  John’s,  Leith,  and  superintended  the  Sunday 
school.  He  worried  because  the  children  took  no  interest 
in  the  singing.  Nothing  was  provided  for  them  except 


I  HEARD  THE  VOICE  OF  JESUS  SAY 


213 

the  Scottish  Psalms  in  meter  and  a  few  hymns  set  to 
solemn  tunes,  and  neither  the  words  nor  music  appealed 
to  them.  The  young  superintendent  tried  the  experiment 
of  writing  simpler  hymns  to  melodies  the  scholars  al¬ 
ready  knew.  “  I  lay  my  sins  on  Jesus  ”  set  to  “  Heber  ” 
and  “  The  morning,  the  bright  and  the  beautiful  morn¬ 
ing  ”  set  to  “  The  Flowers  of  the  Forest,”  were  the  first, 
printed  on  little  leaflets.  The  results  were  so  happy 
that  he  wrote  a  few  more,  including  “  I  was  a  wandering 
sheep,”  and  printed  them  with  a  number  of  selected 
hymns  on  new  leaflets. 

Evidently  the  ban  against  human  hymns  was  not 
strictly  enforced  in  the  home  and  Sunday  school,  but 
there  was  as  yet  no  movement  to  introduce  them  into 
the  church  service.  When  the  Free  Church  went  out 
in  1843  it  kept  on  using  the  metrical  Psalms  as  a  matter 
of  course,  and  during  the  whole  of  Bonar’s  ministry  at 
Kelso,  no  hymns  were  sung  in  his  church  other  than  the 
group  of  Paraphrases  already  in  the  Psalm  books. 

His  first  hymn  for  grown  people,  “  Go,  labor  on,” 
was  written  at  Leith,  to  hearten  his  fellow  workers  in  his 
mission  district.  After  he  went  to  the  quieter  scenes 
of  Kelso,  his  hymn  writing  grew  into  a  habit.  He  kept 
a  note  book  at  his  side  or  in  his  pocket,  wherever  he 
went,  in  which  he  would  jot  down  a  thought  or  a  line  or 
a  verse,  to  be  worked  up  at  leisure,  or  even  a  hymn 
hastily  written  in  pencil,  with  contractions,  elisions,  and 
sometimes  a  phrase  in  shorthand. 

Dr.  Bonar’s  son  has  had  some  pages  from  these  note¬ 
books  reproduced,  and  we  have  before  us  a  rough  draft 
of  “  I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say.”  Here,  indeed,  is 
the  story  of  the  hymn  as  we  see  it  unfolding  like  a 
flower  from  the  first  seed  thought  to  the  perfect  form. 


c-r 


THE  ROUGH  DRAFT  OF  THE  HYMN 


/  HEARD  THE  VOICE  OF  JESUS  54  Y 


215 

We  have  even  the  quaint  little  designs  in  the  margin 
that  the  hand  makes  almost  unconsciously  while  the 
brain  is  shaping  its  thoughts.  The  reproduction  is 
somewhat  faint,  but  the  original  was  in  pencil  and  is  now 
rubbed  and  faded.  The  photographer  who  copied  it  is 
said  to  have  required  an  exposure  of  three  quarters  of 
an  hour  to  get  the  result  that  we  have  before  us. 

In  the  notebook  this  hymn  comes  next  to  the  well- 
known  Advent  hymn,  “  The  Church  has  waited  long.” 
It  is  not  printed  among  the  seventeen  of  his  own  hymns 
Dr.  Bonar  included  in  his  The  Bible  Hymn  Book  of 
1845,  and  is  said  to  have  appeared  first  in  another  col¬ 
lection,  Hymns  original  and  selected ,  1846,  which  the 
present  writer  has  not  seen.  As  one  after  another  note¬ 
book  filled  up  during  those  quiet  years  at  Kelso,  Dr. 
Bonar  gathered  and  printed  his  hymns  as  Hymns  of 
Faith  and  Hope;  a  first  volume  in  1857,  a  second  in 
1861,  a  third  in  1866.  After  going  to  Edinburgh  he 
brought  out  three  more  volumes:  The  Song  of  the  new 
Creation  in  1872,  Hymns  of  the  Nativity  in  1879,  and 
Communion  Hymns  in  1881. 

When  these  “  Hymns  of  Faith  and  Hope  ”  were  new 
they  took  the  religious  world  by  storm.  They  were  so 
fresh  and  original,  so  beautiful  in  phrase  and  melodious, 
so  spiritual  and  tender,  that  people  were  disposed  to 
make  a  cult  of  them  and  to  say,  “  There  never  were 
such  hymns  as  these.”  Canon  Duncan,  speaking  no 
doubt  for  England  rather  than  for  Bonar’s  Scotland,  is 
responsible  for  the  statement  that  “  they  were  at  one 
time  found  in  almost  every  Christian  home.”  And  the 
editors  of  hymn  books  vied  with  one  another  in  put¬ 
ting  a  representative  selection  of  them  before  the  con¬ 
gregations. 


216  studies  of  familiar  hymns 

Well,  novelty  wears  off  and  an  indiscriminate  popular¬ 
ity  always  brings  about  a  reaction  of  criticism  if  not 
indifference.  Moreover  the  atmosphere  of  the  religious 
world  changes,  whether  for  better  or  worse,  and  at 
present  Bonar’s  thought  of  life  as  a  pilgrimage  and  his 
homesickness  for  heaven  do  not  make  the  wide  appeal 
they  once  did.  These  changing  conditions  have  affected 
the  popularity  of  his  hymns.  The  critics  say  now  that 
some  of  them  are  careless  and  some  repetitious  and  me¬ 
chanical;  and  good  people  say  that  others  of  them  are 
somewhat  morbid.  And  so  it  has  come  about  that  fewer 
of  Bonar’s  hymns  are  sung  today  than  was  the  case  a 
generation  ago.  One  can  feel  some  sympathy,  perhaps, 
with  a  present-day  bustling  Christian  who  says  that  “  A 
few  more  years  shall  roll  ”  gets  on  his  nerves ;  but  it  is 
hard  to  belive  that  any  changes  of  atmosphere  will  affect 
“  I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say.”  It  adds  something 
even  to  the  beautiful  words  of  Christ:  it  adds  the  human 
response,  without  which  Christ’s  words  were  quite  in 
vain. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

i.  This  hymn  captivates  us  by  its  lyrical  beauty,  but 
it  deserves  careful  study.  Bishop  Fraser,  of  Manchester, 
England,  regarded  it  as  the  best  in  the  language.  It 
belongs  to  the  class  known  as  “  subjective  hymns  ”  or 
“  hymns  of  inward  experience.”  Like  so  many  of 
Bonar’s,  it  mirrors  the  life  of  Christ  in  the  soul.  If  the 
writer  understands  it,  it  pictures  human  life  as  a  pil¬ 
grimage  (Bonar  seems  to  have  thought  of  life  in  no  other 
aspect).  The  pilgrim  has  sought  far  and  wide  for  things 
unattained.  As  night  comes  on  he  is  weary  of  it  all,  he 
hears  “  The  Voice  from  Galilee,”  and  heeding  it  finds 


1  HEARD  THE  VOICE  OF  JESUS  SAY 


217 

rest.  But  the  new  peace  in  the  heart  must  be  sustained, 
and  the  pilgrim  reaches  out  his  hand  to  take  from  Christ’s 
the  offered  water  of  life.  And  thus  refreshed  he  rests  in 
the  Lord.  At  dawn  he  awakes,  at  peace  but  a  pilgrim 
still.  It  is  another  day  and  he  must  go  on  —  but  not  to 
resume  the  old  quest.  It  is  a  new  day  of  which  Christ 
is  the  Light,  and  a  transfigured  world  through  which 
Christ  is  the  Way.  And  in  that  Light  and  by  that  Way 
he  will  walk  “  till  traveling  days  are  done.” 

Is  this  a  fair  interpretation  of  the  hymn? 

2.  Some  of  us  will  recall  a  discussion  of  the  compar¬ 
ative  merits  of  Dickens  and  Thackeray  as  novelists,  in 
which  the  after-dinner  speaker,  having  laid  out  his  ap¬ 
proaches  in  cold  blood,  waxes  warmer  and  warmer  as  he 
proceeds,  until  he  ends  in  a  spluttering  confusion  of 
cross  currents  through  which  all  that  the  ear  can  catch 
are  excited  references  to  Dackeray  and  Thickens  or 
Thickeray  and  Dackens. 

The  purpose  of  this  little  skit  no  doubt  was  to  poke 
fun  at  criticism  by  comparison,  the  method  of  appraising 
one  writer  by  contrasting  him  with  another.  But  the 
method  has  its  use,  if  only  for  bringing  out  the  distinc¬ 
tive  features  of  each  writer.  It  is  not  unprofitable,  for 
instance,  to  ask  how  the  hymns  of  Bonar  stand  compar¬ 
ison  with  those  of  Watts  and  Charles  Wesley.  We 
might  start  by  comparing  what  is  regarded  as  the  best 
hymn  of  each  writer :  Watts’s  “  When  I  survey  the 
wondrous  cross,”  Wesley’s  “  Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul,” 
and  Bonar’s  “  I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say.” 

The  comparison  may  well  be  confined  to  Bonar’s 
choicer  hymns.  As  was  the  case  both  with  Watts  and 
Wesley,  he  wrote  far  too  much,  and  allowed  facility  to 
usurp  the  place  of  inspiration.  Like  them  he  was  at 


218  studies  of  familiar  hymns 

times  an  extremely  careless  workman,  and  for  some 
reason  never  corrected  infelicities  that  a  little  thought 
might  have  remedied.  In  all  the  editions  of  his  Hymns 
of  Faith  and  Hope,  so  far  as  the  writer  has  collated  them, 
the  plates  remain  unaltered,  even  as  to  a  printer’s  slip. 
Bonar  had  also  a  painful  way  of  ringing  the  changes 
on  his  thought  to  wearisome  lengths,  through  a  series  of 
lines  and  phrases  repeated  with  modifications  of  some 
of  their  words,  after  the  manner  of  Southey  in  his 
“  Cataract  of  Lodore.”  “  Beyond  the  smiling  and  the 
weeping  ”  is  his  best  in  this  manner.  But  even  the 
poorest  of  the  hymns  are  by  Bonar:  they  share  in  an 
individuality  of  thought  and  expression  which  is  as 
fresh  and  characteristic  as  Charles  Wesley’s  was. 

3.  How  are  we  to  trace  Bonar’s  lineage  and  assign 
him  his  place  in  the  development  of  hymn  writing  as  we 
have  followed  it  in  these  studies?  He  was,  to  begin 
with,  a  Scottish  hymn  writer  with  few  predecessors. 
And  is  there  anything  in  Watts  or  Wesley  to  suggest 
him  as  a  pupil  in  the  school  of  either?  He  was  more 
akin  to  the  writers  of  the  Evangelical  Revival,  but  his 
own  Evangelical  theology  he  took  not  from  them  but 
directly  from  the  stern  Reformation  standards  of  Scot¬ 
land,  and  drew  forth  crystal  streams  from  that  massive 
rock.  He  seems  like  a  prophet,  solitary  and  apart  from 
the  line  of  priestly  succession. 

4.  The  correspondents’  column  in  one  of  the  literary 
weeklies  had  a  query,  “  Is  it  true  that  no  Presbyterian 
writers  have  contributed  hymns  of  lasting  position  to 
the  general  stores  of  the  Church  ?  ”  There  had  been  a 
discussion  on  the  subject  perhaps,  and  some  Presbyterian 
was  out  looking  for  ammunition  with  which  to  defend 
the  claims  of  his  own  denomination. 


I  HEARD  THE  VOICE  OF  JESUS  SAY 


219 

Most  people  would  now  agree  that  the  question  is 
not  very  important.  We  choose  our  hymns  for  what 
they  are,  without  anxiety  as  to  the  church  connection 
of  their  authors.  The  modern  hymn  book  presents  the 
nearest  approach  to  church  unity  so  far  achieved.  If, 
however,  the  question  is  raised,  it  is  answered  by  saying 
that  Bonar’s  hymns  are  sung  in  all  Churches  and  are  the 
chief  Presbyterian  contribution  to  the  common  stock. 
Among  other  Presbyterian  hymn  writers  appearing  in 
the  index  of  authors  in  The  Hymnal  revised  are: 

(1)  From  Scotland:  Bruce,  Logan,  Morison,  J.  D. 
Burns,  Norman  MacLeod,  Matheson,  Miss  Borthwick 
and  Mrs.  Findlater,  Brownlie,  Mrs.  Cousin,  and  the 
Duke  of  Argyll. 

(2)  From  Canada:  Robert  Murray. 

(3)  From  the  United  States:  Davies,  J.  W.  Alexander, 
Duffield,  Dunn,  Hastings,  Mrs.  Prentiss,  Wolfe,  Hopper, 
March,  Mrs.  C.  L.  Smith,  and  van  Dyke. 


XIX 

THERE  IS  A  GREEN  HILL  FAR  AWAY 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  There  is  a  green  hill  far  away, 

Without  a  city  wall. 

Where  the  dear  Lord  was  crucified, 

Who  died  to  save  us  all. 

2  We  may  not  know,  we  cannot  tell, 

What  pains  He  had  to  bear; 

But  we  believe  it  was  for  us 
He  hung  and  suffered  there. 

3  He  died  that  we  might  be  forgiven, 

He  died  to  make  us  good, 

That  we  might  go  at  last  to  heaven, 

Saved  by  His  precious  blood. 

4  There  was  no  other  good  enough 

To  pay  the  price  of  sin; 

He  only  could  unlock  the  gate 
Of  heaven,  and  let  us  in. 

5  O  dearly,  dearly  has  He  loved, 

And  we  must  love  Him  too, 

And  trust  in  His  redeeming  blood, 

And  try  His  works  to  do. 

Cecil  Frances  Humphreys  (afterwards  Mrs.  Alexander),  1848 

Note:  The  text  is  taken  from  the  third  edition  of  Hymns  for 
little  Children,  in  which  the  second  line  is  relieved  from  what  was 
apparently  a  typographical  error  in  the  first  edition. 


220 


THERE  IS  A  GREEN  HILL  FAR  AWAY 


221 


HIGH  CHURCH  HYMNS 

This  hymn  was  written  by  a  young  Irish  lady,  Miss 
Cecil  Frances  Humphreys,  a  little  before  1848.  If  the 
Evangelical  authoress  of  “  Just  as  I  am,  without  one 
plea  ”  read  it,  as  probably  she  did,  she  may  have  thought 
it  newfangled  and  queer,  but  she  could  not  have  found 
anything  in  it  contrary  to  the  doctrines  she  loved.  And 
yet  she  must  have  disapproved  very  strongly  of  its 
writer,  for  that  lady  was  one  of  the  young  people  brought 
up  on  the  Evangelical  side  of  the  Church  who  had  come 
under  the  influence  of  the  new  High  Church  Movement 
and  adopted  the  very  “  Puseyite  errors  ”  against  which 
Miss  Elliott  kept  warning  her  friends. 

To  understand  just  what  that  means,  we  have  to  re¬ 
call  a  bit  of  church  history.  Not  long  before,  in  the 
early  eighteen-thirties,  the  Church  of  England  and  of 
Ireland  (disposed  at  the  time  to  be  somewhat  drowsy) 
had  been  startled  by  strange  goings-on  at  Oxford  Uni¬ 
versity,  just  where  the  Methodist  Movement  had  started 
a  century  before.  It  was  the  beginning  of  what  is  gen¬ 
erally  called  the  Oxford  or  High  Church  Movement,  of 
which  Newman  and  Keble  and  Pusey  were  among  the 
leaders.  To  explain  its  purpose  in  a  sentence  is  not 
easy.  It  aimed  to  make  the  Church  less  Protestant, 
to  bring  it  closer  to  the  principles  of  Catholicism  — 
Apostolic  Succession,  the  priesthood  of  ministers,  “  high  ” 
doctrines  of  the  validity  of  sacraments,  and  Catholic 
ceremonial.  Newman  and  some  of  the  other  leaders  were 
to  follow  out  these  principles  so  far  as  to  land  themselves 
in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church.  But  they  left  behind 
them  in  the  Church  of  England  a  powerful  High  Church 


MRS.  ALEXANDER 


THERE  IS  A  GREEN  HILL  FAR  AWAY 


223 

Party  which  has  grown  until  it  is  to-day  stronger  and 
more  “  Catholic  ”  than  it  ever  was. 

Now  every  deeply  felt  religious  movement  shows  an 
impulse  to  make  its  own  songs.  The  Reformation 
Movement  under  Luther  filled  Germany  with  hymn 
singing,  and  under  Calvin  turned  the  Bible  Psalms  into 
people’s  songs.  The  Methodist  movement  put  its  gospel 
into  revival  hymns.  The  Evangelical  Movement  brought 
out  a  wealth  of  hymns  of  personal  experience.  And  the 
High  Church  Movement  has  developed  a  whole  com¬ 
pany  of  writers  of  what  we  might  call  “  churchly  ” 
hymns.  A  feature  of  the  new  movement  was  its  strict 
observance  of  fasts,  festivals  and  saints’  days,  and  its 
setting  up  of  daily  services  and  at  least  weekly  com¬ 
munions.  Suitable  hymns  had  to  be  provided  for  all 
these  occasions,  so  that  many  of  the  new  hymns  were 
“  churchly  ”  in  the  narrower  sense.  Others  are  churchly 
only  in  the  broader  sense  in  which  all  good  Christians 
love  the  Church  and  the  sanctities  of  God’s  House.  And 
there  are  of  course  many  more  which  deal  with  those 
experiences  of  the  gospel  that  lie  deeper  in  the  heart  than 
any  theories  of  the  Church  that  divide  us. 

To  say  that  the  High  Church  Movement  has  inspired 
a  large  proportion  of  the  best  hymns  of  the  nineteenth 
century  is  simply  to  acknowledge  the  truth.  And  so  it 
happens  that  as  we  go  forward  in  these  studies  we  shall 
have  to  follow  the  footsteps  of  Miss  Humphreys  and 
cross  over  from  the  Evangelical  side  to  the  High  Church 
side  of  the  Church  of  England,  if  we  are  to  find  some 
of  the  hymns  most  familiar  and  best  loved.  In  making 
the  crossing  it  may  be  as  well  to  acknowledge  that  a 
disregard  of  the  claims  of  aesthetic  feeling  has  always 
been  a  weaker  side  of  the  Evangelical  Movement. 


224 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


WHY  THE  HYMN  WAS  WRITTEN 

“  There  is  a  green  hill  far  away  ”  is  not  a  High  Church 
hymn  nor  even  a  churchly  hymn,  so  far  as  its  contents 
go.  It  might  have  been  written  by  an  Evangelical ;  and 
in  fact  Miss  Humphreys  never  gave  up  her  Evangelical 
beliefs.  Nevertheless  the  hymn  was  inspired  by  her 
new  churchly  ideals  and  written  as  a  part  of  a  plan  to  ex¬ 
tend  them. 

She  felt  that  if  the  Catholic  principles  of  the  Oxford 
Movement  were  to  prevail,  a  beginning  must  be  made 
by  instilling  “  sound  Church  principles  ”  into  the  chil¬ 
dren.  And  a  first  step  was  to  provide  them  with  at¬ 
tractive  hymns  setting  forth  those  principles.  She  wrote 
some  and  tried  them  on  her  Sunday-school  class.  When 
she  had  written  forty  she  published  them  in  1848  as 
Hymns  for  little  Children,  seventy-two  pages  in  all. 
There  were  two  daily  hymns,  one  on  the  Holy  Trinity,  a 
group  expounding  the  Order  in  the  Prayer  Book  for  a 
child’s  baptism,  and  other  groups  on  the  Apostles’  Creed, 
the  Commandments  and  the  Lord’s  Prayer:  her  selec¬ 
tion  of  topics  being  evidently  intended  to  cover  just 
the  things  a  child  was  expected  to  know  at  its  con¬ 
firmation. 

“  There  is  a  green  hill  far  away  ”  was  one  of  the 
Apostles’  Creed  group,  set  beneath  the  article,  “  Suffered 
under  Pontius  Pilate,  was  crucified,  dead,  and  buried.” 
Now  it  is  necessary  to  know  this  original  setting  of  the 
hymn,  the  where  and  the  why  of  its  printing,  in  order 
to  understand  it.  Some  people  have  failed  to  under¬ 
stand  it  and'  have  misjudged  it.  Dr.  Theodore  L. 
Cuyler,  a  great  lover  of  hymns  and  not  a  bad  judge  of 
them,  wrote  to  The  New  York  Evangelist  in  1895:  “I 


AN  AUTOGRAPHED  VERSE  FROM  MRS.  ALEXANDER^  PEN 


226  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

confess  that  this  popular  lyric  has  always  seemed  to  me 
more  like  a  snatch  of  sacred  geography  and  sound 
theology  than  a  burst  of  praise.”  Some  theologians  on 
the  other  hand  have  objected  that  the  “  theology  ”  was 
too  vague,  and  that  “  He  died  to  make  us  good  ”  is  not 
an  intelligent  statement  of  the  atonement. 

These  objections  are  covered  by  knowing  that  it  is 
a  child’s  hymn,  picturesque  because  a  child  takes  in  a 
picture  more  readily  than  a  thought,  and  endeavoring 
to  state  doctrine  from  a  child’s  point  of  view  and  in  a 
child’s  language.  Its  whole  beauty  lies  in  its  simplicity, 
and  if  it  should  tempt  the  most  systematic  theologian 
to  share  even  for  a  moment  the  mind  of  a  child  that 
would  be  an  added  grace. 

A  number  of  Miss  Humphreys’  hymns  have  taken 
their  place  among  the  classics  of  Christian  childhood. 
But  this  hymn  has  gone  further  than  that.  It  has  firmly 
established  itself  as  a  standard  church  hymn.  There  is 
a  type  of  children’s  literature,  such  as  Alice  in  Wonder¬ 
land  and  Kenneth  Grahame’s  The  Golden  Age,  that  ap¬ 
peals  irresistibly  to  the  child  within  us  all ;  and  the  best 
of  Miss  Humphreys’  children’s  hymns  are  of  that  type. 
Her  “  There  is  a  green  hill  far  away,”  like  Phillips 
Brooks’s  “  O  little  town  of  Bethlehem,”  cannot  be  hidden 
in  the  nursery  or  confined  within  the  Sunday  schoolroom. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

It  is  usually  spoken  of  as  written  by  Mrs.  Alexander, 
wife  of  the  Irish  bishop  or  archbishop  of  that  name, 
just  as  “  Lead,  kindly  Light  ”  is  spoken  of  as  the  work  of 
Cardinal  Newman.  But  Newman  was  a  Protestant 
clergyman  when  he  wrote  his  hymn,  and  Cecil  Hum- 


THERE  IS  A  GREEN  HILL  FAR  AWAY 


227 

phreys  was  not  yet  married  when  she  wrote  this  one: 
when  she  did  marry,  her  husband  was  not  a  bishop  but 
rector  of  a  remote  parish,  and  did  not  become  arch¬ 
bishop  until  after  her  death. 

Miss  Humphreys  was  the  daughter  of  a  major  in  the 
Royal  Marines,  a  Norfolk  gentleman  who  as  a  land 
owner  and  land  agent  had  come  to  reside  in  Wicklow 
County,  Ireland.  She  was  born  there  in  1818  and  spent 
all  her  life  in  Ireland. 

She  wrote  verses  as  a  child,  and  it  is  not  clear  just  how 
she  was  turned  from  the  Evangelical  wing  of  the  Church 
to  the  High  Church  side.  The  romantic  features  of  the 
Oxford  Movement  would  appeal  to  her,  and  no  doubt  the 
beautiful  poetry  of  John  Keble’s  Christian  Year  helped. 
Her  first  volume  of  poetry,  Verses  for  holy  Seasons,  was 
itself  a  “  Christian  Year  ”  adapted  to  the  capacities  of 
children.  It  had  a  hymn  for  every  Sunday  and  every 
other  day  provided  for  in  the  Prayer  Book  “  in  a  kind 
of  sing-song  style  of  versification  ”  a  child  could  easily 
learn.  That  was  in  1846.  Her  Hymns  for  little  Children 
followed  two  years  later,  and  had  a  preface  by  John 
Keble. 

In  October,  1850,  she  married  the  Rev.  William  Alex¬ 
ander,  a  rector  in  Tyrone,  and  a  very  eloquent  preacher, 
who  seventeen  years  later  became  Bishop  of  Derry 
and  Raphoe  and  ultimately  “  Primate  of  all  Ireland.” 
She  was  admirably  fitted  to  be  a  pastor’s  wife.  She  was 
as  far  as  possible  from  the  dreamy,  ineffectual  type  of 
poet.  She  never  posed,  detested  gush  and  sentimentality, 
had  a  direct  tongue  and  incisive  speech,  and  she  turned 
a  vigilant  eye  upon  her  husband’s  house,  garden  and 
farm.  She  kept  her  devotional  life  largely  hidden  in  her 
heart,  but  was  a  strict  “  Prayer  Book  Christian,”  going 


228  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

to  church  every  day  and  to  communion  every  week. 
Beyond  that  her  days  were  largely  given  over  to  errands 
of  charity  and  helpfulness,  from  one  poor  Irish  home  to 
another,  from  one  sick-bed  to  another,  from  one  house  of 
sorrow  to  another,  no  matter  how  remote.  She  knew 
all  her  neighbors,  and  loved  them,  especially  the  Irish 
Presbyterians.  “  Dear,  good  people !  ”  she  would  say ; 
u  how  kind  they  are  to  me,  how  ready  to  give  for 
Christ’s  sake!  I  do  like  them.” 

When  her  husband  became  bishop  in  1867,  she  was 
brought  more  into  contact  with  society  and  large  insti¬ 
tutions.  She  became  the  hostess  of  many  distinguished 
people  and  shared  the  publicity  of  a  bishop’s  life.  But 
she  was  as  much  at  home  in  the  back  streets  of 
Londonderry  as  in  the  Bishop’s  Palace.  It  was  in  the 
palace  she  died  on  October  12,  1895,  and  to  her  funeral 
a  great  throng  gathered  from  England  as  well  as  from 
Ireland,  thus  paying  a  spontaneous  tribute  to  a  noble  life. 

If  some  of  them  were  paying  tribute  also  to  the  very 
real  vein  of  poetry  that  was  in  her,  she  herself  would 
not  have  welcomed  it.  She  was  possibly  the  only  poet 
that  ever  lived  who  did  not  like  to  hear  her  poems 
praised.  “  Again  and  again,”  her  husband  says,  “  I  have 
read  to  her  words  of  lofty,  of  almost  impassioned  com¬ 
mendation  from  men  of  genius  or  holiness,  of  rank  and 
position.  She  listened  without  a  remark  and  looked  up 
almost  with  a  frown.”  The  exception  was  his  reading 
a  little  tract  by  an  English  nonconformist  minister.  It 
told  the  story  (for  whose  truth  the  writer  vouched)  of 
a  great  change  in  the  heart  and  life  of  a  very  worldly 
man.  He  happened  to  hear  “  There  is  a  green  hill  far 
away  ”  exquisitely  sung.  It  awakened  feelings  and 
yearnings  that  proved  to  be  the  starting  point  of  a  new 


THERE  IS  A  GREEN  HILL  FAR  AWAY  229 

life.  “  Mrs.  Alexander  almost  sprang  from  her  chair, 
looked  me  in  the  face,  and  said :  ‘  Thank  God !  I  do  like 
to  hear  that  ’  ” 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  The  second  line  of  this  hymn  has  an  interesting 
little  history  all  its  own. 

When  Hymns  for  little  Children  was  printed  in  1848 
it  read  there: 

“  Beside  a  ruined  city  wall.” 

That  must  have  been  a  blunder,  one  would  think,  because 
the  two  extra  syllables  could  not  possibly  be  sung  to  a 
common  meter  tune.  In  the  third  edition  (1849),  the 
line  reads, 

“  Without  a  city  wall,” 

and  so  it  still  stands  in  the  234th  thousand  issue  of  1864. 

But  sometime  later  the  authoress  was  asked  by  a 
small  child  what  was  meant  by  a  green  hill  not  having  a 
city  wall ;  and  so  she  changed  the  dubious  “  without  ”  to 
“  outside,”  and  in  her  latest  text  and  in  Hymns  ancient 
and  modern  the  line  reads, 

“  Outside  a  city  wall.” 

And  yet  when  Bishop  Alexander  published  her  Poems 
after  her  death,  he  restored  the  “  without,”  which  cer¬ 
tainly  falls  more  pleasantly  on  the  ear.  Is  there  any 
real  necessity  for  resorting  to  “  outside”? 

2.  Nothing  sounds  more  sweet  to  us  than  the  hymns 
we  love  sung  by  the  lips  of  children.  But  when  we  ask 
what  impression  the  words  they  sing  make  upon  the 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


230 

children's  own  hearts  and  minds,  we  get  a  different  point 
of  view  altogether.  The  line  we  have  just  discussed  il¬ 
lustrates  the  difficulty  of  getting  to  a  child’s  mind. 
There  are  other  illustrations  in  plenty.  The  child  who 
asked  for  the  hymn  about  “  the  boy  who  stole  the 
watch  ”  was  referring  to 

“  The  old  man,  meek  and  mild, 

The  priest  of  Israel,  slept; 

His  watch  the  temple-child, 

The  little  Levite,  kept.” 

Dr.  Watts  was  the  first  Englishman  to  write  hymns  chil¬ 
dren  could  understand:  they  could  hardly  mistake 

“  Let  dogs  delight  to  bark  and  bite, 

For  God  hath  made  them  so;  ” 

and  his  Divine  Songs  for  the  use  of  Children  monopo¬ 
lized  the  field  for  a  century.  Charles  Wesley  tried  to 
improve  upon  them  with  his  Hymns  for  Children .  Of 
these  Dr.  A.  E.  Gregory,  not  the  less  a  good  Wesleyan 
for  his  sense  of  humor,  remarks  that  some  of  them  must 
have  frightened  a  poor  little  Methodist  out  of  his  wits. 
And  the  Taylor  sisters,  Ann  and  Jane,  followed  in  1810 
with  their  Hymns  for  infant  minds,  almost  too  infantile, 
it  seems  now,  but  widely  used  in  their  day. 

When  the  High  Church  Movement  began  there  were 
no  children’s  hymns  extant  that  fitted  in  with  High 
Church  ideals.  Miss  Humphreys  was  only  one  of  sev¬ 
eral  who  tried  to  provide  them,  but  she  was  the  most 
successful  with  her  Hymns  for  little  Children.  And  yet 
even  of  these  the  proportion  that  won  their  way  was 
small,  and  of  the  children’s  hymns  of  her  later  life,  which 
were  very  many,  scarcely  any  are  even  remembered. 


THERE  IS  A  GREEN  HILL  FAR  AWAY 


231 

If  then  it  is  so  extremely  difficult  to  write  good  chil¬ 
dren’s  hymns,  and  if  children  get  the  strangest  notions 
out  of  their  hymns  even  when  they  are  good,  a  question 
opens  out  that  is  at  least  worthy  of  discussion.  May  it 
not  prove  the  wise  course  to  encourage  the  children  to 
learn  the  great  hymns  of  the  Church  while  memory  is 
strong,  with  such  explanations  as  we  can  give,  trusting 
that  as  they  grow  older  the  hymns  securely  lodged  in 
their  memory  will  prove  a  life-long  treasure?  Is  not 
this  the  course  we  pursue  in  respect  of  the  Bible,  the 
Creed,  and  the  Commandments,  much  of  which  is  be¬ 
yond  a  child’s  understanding? 

3.  This  hymn  had  the  honor  of  being  set  to  music,  as 
a  solo,  by  one  of  the  most  distinguished  of  modern 
French  musicians,  Charles  Frangois  Gounod,  who  is 
said  to  have  remarked  that  the  words  themselves  were 
so  musical  they  hardly  needed  such  setting.  His  music 
to  the  minds  of  many  is  the  most  perfect  interpretation 
of  the  hymn.  Mr.  Gower’s  “  Meditation,”  to  which  the 
words  are  set  in  The  Hymnal  revised,  was  written  for 
“  There  is  a  land  of  pure  delight,”  but  is  becoming  more 
and  more  closely  attached  to  the  present  hymn.  Mr. 
Gower  was  an  Englishman  who  came  early  to  this  coun¬ 
try,  engaging  himself  with  mining  interests  at  Denver, 
Colorado,  where  he  died  in  1922.  The  tune  “  Horsley,” 
printed  beneath  the  words,  is  the  favorite  in  most  English 
churches,  and  one  of  solid  worth,  likely  to  grow  in  the 
esteem  of  those  who  make  use  of  it. 


XX 

ART  THOU  WEARY,  ART  THOU  LANGUID 


THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Art  thou  weary,  art  thou  languid, 

Art  thou  sore  distrest? 

“Come  to  Me,”  saith  One,  “and,  coming, 
Be  at  rest.” 

2  Hath  He  marks  to  lead  me  to  Him, 

If  He  be  my  Guide? 

“  In  His  feet  and  hands  are  wound-prints, 
And  his  side.” 

3  Is  there  diadem,  as  Monarch, 

That  His  brow  adorns? 

“Yea,  a  crown,  in  very  surety. 

But  of  thorns.” 

4  If  I  find  Him,  if  I  follow, 

What  His  guerdon  here? 

“  Many  a  sorrow,  many  a  labor, 

Many  a  tear.” 

5  If  I  still  hold  closely  to  Him, 

What  hath  He  at  last? 

“  Sorrow  vanquished,  labor  ended, 

Jordan  passed.” 

6  If  I  ask  Him  to  receive  me, 

Will  He  say  me  nay? 

“  Not  till  earth  and  not  till  heaven 
Pass  away.” 

232 


ART  THOU  WEARY,  ART  THOU  LANGUID  233 

7  Finding,  following,  keeping,  struggling, 

Is  He  sure  to  bless? 

“  Saints,  apostles,  prophets,  martyrs, 

Answer,  ‘Yes.’  ” 

Rev.  John  Mason  Neale,  1862 

Note:  The  text  is  that  of  Dr.  Neale’s  Hymns  of  the  Eastern  Church 
translated,  except  in  the  third  line  of  the  last  verse,  which  there 
reads,  “  Angels,  Martyrs,  Prophets,  Virgins.” 

A  HYMN  IN  DIALOGUE 

The  hymn  takes  the  form  of  a  dialogue  between  an 
evangelist  who  offers  Christ  as  the  Way  to  rest  and  a 
pilgrim  who  asks  about  the  signposts  and  the  road.  The 
form  is  striking  but  it  is  not  strange.  “  Watchman,  tell 
us  of  the  night  ”  is  also  a  dialogue,  and  those  who  have 
followed  these  studies  will  recall  John  Cennick  and  his 
Sacred  Hymns  “  mostly  composed  in  DIALOGUES.” 

The  conversational  form  is  older  still.  The  Twenty- 
fourth  Psalm  is  a  hymn  in  dialogue  between  two  choirs, 
one  stationed  within  the  holy  walls,  the  other  gathered 
outside  the  gate  and  claiming  the  right  to  enter.  But  in 
the  present  hymn  the  give-and-take  between  the  speakers 
is  brisker,  more  dramatic. 

Its  dramatic  quality  is  brought  out  in  a  passage  to¬ 
ward  the  close  of  Sally  Pratt  McLean’s  novel,  Cape  Cod 
Folks.  The  young  men  of  the  village  had  stayed  “  down 
to  shore  ”  in  the  late  afternoon  putting  the  finishing 
touches  on  “  mendin’  up  the  old  schooner.”  In  the 
evening  a  few  sorrowing  neighbors  gathered  at  Grandma 
Keeler’s,  where  Captain  Satchell  *  was  telling  how 
George  Olver  and  Lute  Cradlebow  had  sung  this  hymn 
together  as  they  worked  upon  the  schooner,  just  be- 
*  These  names  were  changed  in  later  editions  of  the  novel. 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


234 

fore  the  black  squall  came,  in  which  Lute  went  down 
to  his  heroic  death. 

“  By  and  by,  him  and  George  Olver  struck  up  a  song. 
I’ve  heern  ’em  sing  it  before,  them  two.  As  nigh  as  I 
calk’late,  it’s  about  findin’  rest  in  Jesus,  and  one  a  askin’ 
questions,  all  fa’r  and  squar  ’,  to  know  the  way  and 
whether  it’s  a  goin’  to  lead  thar’  straight  or  not,  and  the 
other  answerin’.  And  he  —  he  was  a  tinkerin,’  ’way  up 
on  the  foremast,  George  Olver  and  the  rest  on  us  was 
astern,  —  and  I’ll  hear  to  my  dyin’  day  how  his  voice 
came  a  floatin’  down  to  us  thar’,  —  chantin’-like  it 
was  —  cl’ar  and  fearless  and  slow.  So  he  asks,  for 
findin’  Jesus,  ef  thar’s  any  marks  to  foller  by;  and  George 
Olver,  he  answers  about  them  bleedin’  nail-prints,  and 
the  great  one  in  His  side. 

“  So  then  that  voice  comes  down  ag’in,  askin’  if  thar’s 
any  crown,  like  other  kings,  to  tell  Him  by ;  and  George 
Olver,  he  answers  straight  about  that  crown  0’  thorns. 

“  Then  says  that  other  voice,  floatin’  so  strong  and 
cl’ar,  and  if  he  gin  up  all  and  follered,  what  should  he 
have?  what  now?  So  George  Olver,  he  sings  deep  0’  the 
trial  and  the  sorrowin’.  But  that  other  voice  never 
shook,  a  askin’,  and  what  if  he  helt  to  Him  to  the  end, 
what  then  should  it  be,  what  then?  George  Olver  an¬ 
swers:  ‘Forevermore,  the  sorrowin’  ended  —  Death 
gone  over.’ 

“  Then  he  sings  out,  like  his  mind  was  all  made  up, 
‘  And  if  he  undertook  it,  would  he  likely  be  turned 
away  ?  ’ 

“  ‘  And  it’s  likelier,’  George  Olver  answers  him,  ‘  that 
heaven  and  earth  shall  pass.’ 

“  So  I’ll  hear  it  to  my  dyin’  day  —  his  voice  a  floatin’ 
down  to  me  from  up  above  thar’  somewhar’,  askin’  them 


ART  THOU  WEARY,  ART  THOU  LANGUID  235 

questions  that  nobody  could  ever  answer  like,  so  soon, 
he  answered  ’em  for  himself.” 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

John  Mason  Neale  was  another  young  recruit  of  the 
High  Church  Party  in  the  Church  of  England  who  came 
over  from  the  Evangelical  side.  He  was  born  in  London 
in  January,  1818;  the  son  of  an  Evangelical  clergyman, 
and  at  eighteen  was  sent  up  to  Cambridge  University. 
The  High  Church  Movement,  begun  at  Oxford,  was  very 
active  there  by  this  time,  and  Neale  gave  himself  up  to 
it  with  his  whole  heart,  becoming  as  much  of  a  “  Cath¬ 
olic  ”  as  one  can  without  submitting  to  the  Pope’s  au¬ 
thority.  The  spread  of  the  Movement  was  creating  gen¬ 
eral  alarm  throughout  the  country,  and  Neale,  who  was 
nothing  if  not  outspoken,  was  already  a  marked  man. 
The  Bishop  of  Winchester  refused  his  license,  but  Bishop 
Monk  ordained  him  in  1842.  He  passed  his  whole  min¬ 
istry  under  the  shadow  of  reproach  and  disfavor.  The 
only  preferment  in  the  Church  that  came  to  him  was  the 
wardenship  of  Sackville  College  at  East  Grinstead, 
some  twenty-nine  miles  from  London.  With  a  high- 
sounding  name  the  college  was  merely  an  endowed  alms¬ 
house,  and  the  wardenship  carried  a  salary  of  less  than 
thirty  pounds.  This  position  Neale  obtained  in  1846  and 
retained  until  his  death  there  in  August,  1866;  a  period 
of  twenty  years,  for  sixteen  of  which  he  was  prohibited 
by  his  bishop  from  exercising  any  ministerial  functions, 
and  during  several  of  them  was  occasionally  subject  to 
visitation  by  the  “  No-Popery  ”  men. 

When  he  founded  at  East  Grinstead  a  nursing  “  Sister¬ 
hood  of  S.  Margaret  ”  he  was  felt  to  have  capped  his 


236  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

offenses  by  adding  “  a  Romish  convent  ”  to  the  resources 
of  a  Protestant  Church.  So  intense  were  the  feelings 
aroused  that,  when  Neale  and  the  Sisters  took  the  body 
of  one  who  had  died  to  Lewes  for  burial,  they  were  at¬ 
tacked  in  the  churchyard  by  a  mob.  Neale  was  knocked 
down  and  maltreated,  the  Sisters  were  hustled  along 
the  streets,  and  the  whole  party  rescued  with  great  diffi¬ 
culty  by  the  police  and  finally  got  on  board  the  train 
for  East  Grinstead.  For  such  are  the  reversals  of  re¬ 
ligious  history.  In  one  century  a  man  is  mobbed  for 
trying  to  stir  up  an  “  Evangelical  Revival,”  in  the  next 
for  trying  to  stir  up  a  “  Catholic  Revival.” 

Such  experiences  did  not  suggest  to  Neale  any  compro¬ 
mise  of  his  church  views.  Those  were  fixed  ideas,  on 
which  his  whole  life  was  built.  He  believed  that  in 
the  “  Catholic  ”  system  of  religion  he  had  found  ulti¬ 
mate  truth  and  was  incapable  of  “liberal  ”  views  in 
theology  or  politics.  The  opposition  or  enmity  he 
aroused  he  met  by  ignoring  it  and  turning  his  back  upon 
his  accusers.  With  an  elevation  of  mind  that  refused 
to  harbor  resentment,  he  calmly  pursued  his  own  ideals 
of  life,  in  which  scholarship  and  charity  happily  mingled. 
In  his  study  at  East  Grinstead  or  abroad  he  carried  for¬ 
ward  his  researches  on  the  sources  of  early  church  his¬ 
tory  and  worship,  bringing  forth  work  after  work  marked 
by  a  learning  that  in  his  own  lines  had  no  equal  and  by 
a  productiveness  almost  without  parallel.  He  gave 
special  attention  to  the  hymns  of  the  Latin  Church,  to 
which  the  minds  of  High  Churchmen  had  turned  as  more 
ancient  and  seemly  than  the  current  hymns  of  the  Evan¬ 
gelicals.  He  explored  their  sources,  gathered  many 
hitherto  unknown,  wrote  their  history,  and  translated 
some  of  them  with  brilliant  success. 


DR.  JOHN  MASON  NEALE 


238  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

But  Neale  was  more  than  a  scholar.  He  wrote  many 
books  for  the  people,  —  sermons,  young  people’s  stories, 
“  readings  ”  to  the  aged  and  the  sick.  There  are  some 
who  regard  him  as  a  great  master  of  English,  and  a 
great  teacher  of  that  pure  religion  which  lies  deeper 
than  the  clash  of  rival  systems.  That  accomplished 
bookman,  Sir  William  Robertson  Nicoll,  himself  a  Con- 
gregationalist  and  Evangelical,  shortly  before  his  death 
confessed  that  “  Neale’s  Readings  to  the  Aged  is  my 
favorite  amongst  all  religious  books,  and  many  pages  of 
it  I  could  almost  repeat  by  heart.”  Good  as  these 
books  are,  it  is  not  by  them  that  Neale’s  memory  is 
kept  green  so  much  as  by  such  hymns  as  “  Jerusalem  the 
golden  ”  and  “  Art  thou  weary,  art  thou  languid.” 


WHY  THE  HYMN  IS  CALLED  A  GREEK  HYMN 

The  Eastern  or  Greek  Church,  as  well  as  the  Roman, 
claims  to  be  “  Catholic.”  It  claims  also  to  be,  like  its 
Lord,  unchangeable.  And  while  Newman  and  others 
were  turning  toward  the  Church  of  Rome,  Neale  was 
strongly  disposed  to  seek  a  refuge  from  modern  liberal¬ 
ism  in'  that  immovable  fortress  of  the  faith,  the  Greek 
Church.  He  devoted  -much  time  to  studying  its  history 
and  liturgies.  He  was  the  first  Englishman  to  tackle 
what  he  called  “the  eighteen  quarto  books  of  Greek 
Church  poetry,”  and  in  1862  he  published  a  little  volume 
of  Hymns  of  the  Eastern  Church  translated. 

It  was  a  wonderful  little  book:  as  if  he  had  discovered 
a  forgotten  country,  not  in  Arctic  regions  but  in  the  fer¬ 
tile  East,  which  he  had  been  cultivating  alone  for  twelve 
years,  and  now  brought  into  our  Western  Churches 
some  of  the  flowers  he  had  raised.  Among  them  were 


ART  THOU  WEARY,  ART  THOU  LANGUID  239 

such  hymns  as  “  The  day  is  past  and  over,”  “  Christian, 
dost  thou  see  them,”  “  The  day  of  resurrection,”  and 
“  Art  thou  weary,  art  thou  languid.” 


The  book  found  a  ready  welcome  among  those  inter¬ 
ested  in  the  old  church  hymns.  Only  a  year  earlier  a 
group  of  clergymen  had  put  forth  a  collection  with  the 
taking  title,  Hymns  ancient  and  modern.  It  was  en¬ 
thusiastically  received  by  High  Churchmen,  resented  by 


240 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Evangelicals,  and  soon  became  (as  it  continues  to  be) 
the  chief  hymnal  of  the  Church  of  England.  By  1868 
the  time  had  come  to  enlarge  it,  and  an  “  Appendix  ”  of 
that  year  afforded  the  opportunity  of  adding  eight  of 
Neale’s  hymns  of  the  Eastern  Church.  Of  the  eight 
“  Art  thou  weary  ”  made  the  quickest  appeal  to  the  pub¬ 
lic:  it  was  simple  and  touching,  and  the  catchy  tune, 
“  Stephanos,”  has  carried  it  all  over  the  English-speaking 
world. 

It  must  be  acknowledged  that  the  little  voyager  sailed 
under  false  colors.  Dr.  Neale  had  launched  it  flying  the 
Greek  flag,  and  everywhere  it  was  welcomed  as  an  an¬ 
cient  Greek  hymn,  while  in  fact  it  was  not  a  Greek  hymn 
at  all,  but  a  modern  English  hymn  composed  by  Dr. 
Neale  himself. 

He  had  printed  it  in  1862  among  his  translations  of 
the  Hymns  of  the  Eastern  Church,  naming  “  S.  Stephen 
the  Sabaite,”  an  eighth  century  Syrian  monk,  as  its 
author,  giving  a  sketch  of  his  life,  quoting  the  first  line 
of  the  hymn  in  Greek,  even  naming  the  particular  service 
book  in  which  he  had  found  it :  “  I  copy,”  he  said,  “  from 
a  dateless  Constantinopolitan  book.”  What  could  be 
more  explicit?  And  who  was  there  in  England  to  ques- 
-tion  his  facts? 

And  yet  just  before  his  last  illness  in  1866  Dr.  Neale 
brought  out  a  third  edition  of  his  Hymns  of  the  Eastern 
Church  with  a  new  preface  in  which  he  said  that  “  Art 
thou  weary  ”  and  two  of  the  other  hymns  “  contain  so 
little  from  the  Greek,  that  they  ought  not  to  have  been 
included  in  this  collection;  in  any  future  Edition  they 
shall  appear  as  an  Appendix.” 

We  can  imagine  what  had  happened.  He  had  been 
anxious  to  make  out  the  best  case  he  could  for  the  Greek 


ART  THOU  WEARY ,  ART  THOU  LANGUID  241 

hymns  as  a  link  between  the  Greek  and  English 
Churches.  But  even  to  make  them  presentable  he  had 
to  change  and  omit  and  piece  together,  and  to  water 
some  doctrines  too  strong  for  English  palates.  In  some 
of  his  translations  a  searcher  would  find  it  hard  to 
identify  his  originals,  and  on  reflection  his  conscience 
compelled  him  to  confess  that  “  Art  thou  weary  ”  had  no 
original  at  all.  Possibly  some  phrase  or  mannerism  of 
St.  Stephen  moved  him  to  write  it,  but  it  was  all  his  own. 

Dr.  Neale  had  made  what  the  French  call  a  faux  pas ; 
an  unfortunate  one  because  when  a  mistake  once  gets 
into  circulation  it  is  hard  to  correct.  He  did  not  live  to 
remove  the  three  hymns  from  his  translations,  and  after 
his  death  his  publishers  did  not  help  much.  At  least 
one  edition  of  Hymns  of  the  Eastern  Church  was  printed 
just  as  he  left  it,  and  a  fifth  edition  that  did  remove  the 
hymn  to  an  appendix  printed  there  with  it  all  the  data 
about  St.  Stephen’s  authorship  and  even  omitted  Dr. 
Neale’s  little  confession  from  the  preface. 

This  explains  no  doubt  why  Mr.  King,  dealing  with  this 
hymn  in  his  Anglican  Hymnology  of  1885,  gives  not  only 
a  biography  of  the  Syrian  monk  but  an  account  of  a  visit 
to  the  monastery  of  Mar  Saba  as  “  more  endeared  ”  to 
him  when  he  remembers  that  “  there  eleven  centuries 
ago  St.  Stephen  wrote  the  touching  hymn.”  All  of  which 
in  his  turn  Mr.  Duffield  has  copied  into  his  English 
Hymns  and  Mr.  Morrison  in  his  turn  into  his  Great 
Hymns  of  the  Church.  And  so  it  happens  that  our  little 
voyager  still  finds  a  harbor  in  many  a  Christian  heart, 
flying  the  Greek  flag  under  which  it  was  launched  in 
1862. 


242 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  The  Church  is  a  society  of  human  beings,  and  al¬ 
most  as  open  to  fluctuations  of  feeling  and  changes  of 
opinion  and  manners  as  worldly  society  is.  The  Word 
of  God  does  not  change,  but  our  response  to  it  is  always 
changing.  The  Church’s  hymn  book  is  a  sort  of  regis¬ 
tering  thermometer  that  first  feels  and  then  records  these 
changes.  And  the  hymn  books  of  to-day  show  a  very 
different  face  from  those,  say,  of  1840.  These  changes 
are  of  course  largely  due  to  the  Oxford  Movement  and 
the  new  ideals  of  churchliness  it  spread  abroad,  but  in 
bringing  them  about  Dr.  Neale  has  had  more  influence 
than  any  other  man.  He  linked  the  Church’s  hymns  with 
the  Church’s  history ;  for  which  achievement  he  alone  of 
the  men  of  his  time  had  the  requisite  scholarship.  He 
invested  our  congregational  praise  with  something  like 
an  atmosphere  of  romance  —  the  light  of  other  days  and 
glimpses  of  far-off  things:  he  awakened  the  Church  to  a 
sense  of  “  her  unending  song.”  And  his  matchless  trans¬ 
lations  have  actually  made  some  hymns  of  the  Middle 
Ages  as  familiar  as  household  words. 

When  we  remember  how  extreme  and  uncompromis¬ 
ing  Dr.  Neale’s  High  Church  views  were,  it  is  amazing 
to  find  that  in  some  denominations  which  once  sang  no 
hymns  but  those  of  Dr.  Watts  and  still  adhere  in  the 
main  to  Watts’s  theology,  there  are  nearly  as  many  of 
Dr.  Neale’s  hymns  in  actual  use  to-day  as  of  Watts 
himself.  And  the  fact  may  properly  raise  the  question 
whether  he  was  not  only  the  greatest  personal  influence 
in  modifying  our  hymnody  but  also  the  greatest  of  the 
nineteenth  century  hymn  writers. 

2.  The  Evangelical  hymn  writer,  Miss  Havergal,  says 


ART  THOU  WEARY ,  ART  THOU  LANGUID  243 

in  one  of  her  letters  that  she  “  cannot  understand  how 
any  Christian  can  stand  still  and  sing  such  a  misrepre¬ 
sentation  of  Christ’s  service  as  ”  are  the  words  of  the 
fourth  verse, — 


If  I  find  Him,  if  I  follow, 

What  His  guerdon  here? 

“  Many  a  sorrow,  many  a  labor, 

Many  a  tear.” 

“  Is  not  that  too  bad  ?  Do  we  not  know  it  to  be 
unfair  to  our  Lord  and  His  happy  service?  Where  does 
He  say  that  is  ‘  His  guerdon  here  ’?  Let  us  just  think 
for  our  service  what  He  does  say:  4  Work;  for  I  am 
with  you,  saith  the  Lord  of  Hosts.’  That  alone  is  the 
grandest,  richest,  sweetest  4  guerdon  here  ’  that  any  lov¬ 
ing  heart  can  ask.” 

Is  there  any  actual  difference  between  the  “  work  ” 
which  is  a  part  of  the  guerdon  here,  according  to  Miss 
Havergal,  and  the  “  many  a  labor,”  which  is  a  part  of 
it,  according  to  Dr.  Neale?  Is  the  saying  “In  this 
world  ye  shall  have  tribulation  ”  to  be  separated  from  the 
“Work;  for  I  am  with  you,”  or  is  Dr.  Neale  right  in 
joining  “  many  a  labor  ”  with  “  many  a  tear  ”?  It  may 
be  that  if  Miss  Havergal  had  been  less  impulsive  and 
willing  to  “  stand  still  ”  long  enough^  to  sing  the  hymn 
through,  she  might  have  come  to  feel  that  in  verse  four 
Dr.  Neale  was  only  laying  the  ground  adroitly  for  the 
“  sorrow  vanquished  ”  of  verse  five. 

3.  Of  the  tunes  to  this  hymn  in  The  Hymnal  revised 
“  Stephanos,”  the  lower  one,  is  that  which  first  attracted 
attention  to  the  words  in  Hymns  ancient  and  modern . 
The  melody  was  composed  by  the  Rev.  Sir  Henry  Wil¬ 
liams  Baker,  editor-in-chief  of  that  book,  author  also  of 


244 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“  The  King  of  love  my  Shepherd  is,”  and  he  asked  Dr. 
Monk,  the  musical  editor,  to  manage  the  harmonies  for 
him.  It  is  a  good  tune  when  sung  deliberately  and  with 
feeling.  Rattled  off  without  feeling,  by  American  voices 
especially,  it  becomes  unpleasant  and  even  acquires  a 
nasal  twang.  Perhaps  the  fact  that  it  is  so  often  rattled 
off  explains  why  many  people  have  come  to  prefer  the 
more  sentimental  tune  of  Dr.  Bullinger. 

To  which  tune  was  it  that  George  Olver  and  Lute 
Cradlebow  sang  these  words  together?  Having  read 
Cape  Cod  Folks,  the  writer  is  confident  they  sang  the 
tune  provided  in  the  Moody  and  Sankey  Gospel  Hymns 
No.  2.  But  does  not  Captain  Satchell’s  description  of 
their  singing  afford  in  itself  clues  enough  to  identify 
the  tune  ? 


XXI 


SAVIOUR,  AGAIN  TO  THY  DEAR  NAME 

WE  RAISE 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  Saviour,  again  to  Thy  dear  Name  we  raise 
With  one  accord  our  parting  hymn  of  praise; 

We  stand  to  bless  Thee  ere  our  worship  cease; 
Then,  lowly  kneeling,  wait  Thy  word  of  peace. 

2  Grant  us  Thy  peace  upon  our  homeward  way; 

With  Thee  began,  with  Thee  shall  end  the  day: 
Guard  Thou  the  lips  from  sin,  the  hearts  from  shame, 
That  in  this  house  have  called  upon  Thy  Name. 

3  Grant  us  Thy  peace,  Lord,  through  the  coming  night; 
Turn  Thou  for  us  its  darkness  into  light; 

From  harm  and  danger  keep  Thy  children  free, 

For  dark  and  light  are  both  alike  to  Thee. 

4  Grant  us  Thy  peace  throughout  our  earthly  life, 

Our  balm  in  sorrow,  and  our  stay  in  strife; 

Then,  when  Thy  voice  shall  bid  our  conflict  cease. 
Call  us,  O  Lord,  to  Thine  eternal  peace. 

Rev.  John  Ellerton,  1866 

Note:  The  text  here  given  is  that  which  was  prepared  for  the 
Appendix  to  Hymns  ancient  and  modern,  1868.  Other  forms  of  the 
hymn  are  referred  to  under  “  Some  Points  for  Discussion.” 


245 


246 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


A  CHURCHLY  HYMN 

This  is  the  third  in  our  little  group  of  High  Church 
hymns,  and  anyone  familiar  with  the  history  of  the  Eng¬ 
lish  Church  and  English  hymns  would  know  at  a  glance 
that  it  was  inspired  by  the  Oxford  Movement.  It  is 
“  churchly.” 

There  is  nothing  romantic  or  striking  in  the  origin 
of  the  hymn  or  in  the  life  of  the  clergyman  who  wrote 
it.  The  interest  lies  rather  in  discovering  the  hymn  to 
be  so  natural  an  expression  of  the  author’s  personality 
and  his  relation  to  the  Movement  that  we  feel  the  writ¬ 
ing  of  it  to  have  been  almost  inevitable. 

Some  strange  tales,  hard  to  credit  nowadays,  are  told 
of  the  neglected  and  sometimes  disreputable  conditions 
of  public  worship  in  English  parish  churches  in  the 
years  before  the  Oxford  Movement  of  the  eighteen- 
thirties  :  tales  of  ancient  buildings  falling  into  decay  and 
dirty,  of  furnishings  shabby  and  unseemly,  of  sacra¬ 
ments  administered  carelessly  and  uncouthly,  of  scanty 
and  irreverent  congregations.  With  every  allowance  for 
exaggeration  it  is  plain  that  the  ordinance  of  worship 
was  suffering  from  indifference. 

To  change  all  that  was  one  of  the  very  first  tasks  the 
High  Church  Party  set  for  itself :  to  make  the  worship 
express  visibly  in  dignity  and  even  stateliness  the  high 
doctrines  it  held  of  Church  and  Sacrament.  The  ex¬ 
treme  men  aimed  at  more  than  this,  at  nothing  less  than 
to  restore  the  full  Catholic  ceremonial:  but  in  an  in¬ 
sistence  upon  outward  beauty  and  reverence  and  in  giv¬ 
ing  more  of  a  mystical  tone  to  the  celebration  of  Holy 
Communion,  all  High  Churchmen  were  agreed.  The 
brightening  and  embellishment  of  public  worship  be- 


SAVIOUR ,  AGAIN  TO  THY  DEAR  NAME  WE  RAISE  247 

came  the  visible  sign  and  token  of  the  Movement,  as 
year  by  year  it  widened  its  bounds  and  gradually,  against 
great  opposition,  changed  the  outward  face  of  the  Church 
of  England. 

This  enrichment  of  the  church  services  was  the  feature 
of  the  Movement  that  especially  attracted  the  Rev. 
John  Ellerton,  author  of  “  Saviour,  again  to  Thy  dear 
Name  we  raise.”  The  hymn  itself  shows  this.  It  could 
have  been  written  only  by  one  to  whom  the  reverent 
conduct  of  public  worship  meant  a  great  deal.  Its  very 
atmosphere  is  churchly.  The  “  we  ”  of  the  opening  line 
makes  us  feel  ourselves  members  of  a  church  engaged  in 
an  act  of  corporate  worship,  now  closing  with  a  parting 
hymn  of  praise.  Our  very  attitudes  of  body  are  por¬ 
trayed.  We  stand  to  sing:  we  kneel  for  the  benediction, 
and  go  out  in  the  hush  that  follows  God’s  word  of  peace. 
And  the  thought  of  the  hymn  is  that  lips  and  heart  so 
engaged  in  reverent  offices  should  carry  with  them  to 
the  life  outside  the  peace  of  that  benediction  and  the 
purity  of  that  worship. 

THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

John  Ellerton  was  born  in  a  refined  and  religious  home 
in  London  nine  days  before  the  Christmas  of  1826. 
There  had  come  to  the  city,  shortly  before  a  young  Pres¬ 
byterian  minister  from  Scotland,  Edward  Irving.  Tall, 
white-faced,  long-haired,  an  orator  and  enthusiast,  his 
preaching  took  the  religious  world  by  storm;  a  great 
Presbyterian  church  was  built  for  him  at  Regent  Square, 
and  he  became  the  fashionable  preacher  of  London. 
Feeling  himself  a  prophet  to  Babylon  the  Great,  his 
message  soon  took  the  shape  of  heralding  the  imminent 


2 48  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

return  of  the  Messiah,  and  was  accompanied  by  a  revival 
of  the  miraculous  gifts  of  the  Apostolic  Church.  As  his 
eloquence  grew  less  coherent,  and  “  the  tongues  ”  began 
to  make  themselves  heard  in  unearthly  shrieks  and  unin¬ 
telligible  “  prophecies,”  he  lost  his  vogue,  was  deposed 
by  the  Church  of  Scotland,  and  faded  out  of  notice  by 
the  general  public. 

The  excited  interest  Irving  had  aroused  in  millenarian 
speculations,  and  the  expectation  of  the  Second  Advent, 
still  continued  among  the  London  Evangelicals.  Mr. 
Ellerton  tells  us  that  in  the  religious  circle  in  which  his 
boyhood  was  spent,  the  favorite  and  inexhaustible  sub¬ 
ject  of  talk  and  reading  was  unfulfilled  prophecy.  The 
chfonology  of  the  future  was  a  chief  concern:  in  what 
year  would  the  Jews  be  restored,  Papacy  be  destroyed, 
the  Millenium  begin?  The  shy  and  sensitive  boy  drank 
it  all  in  and  awaited  with  perfect  faith  some  great  crisis 
predicted  for  1844.  He  was  shocked  when  in  1841  his 
father  executed  a  seven-year  lease  of  some  real  estate. 
These  religious  speculations  he  soon  left  behind,  but  a 
deep  love  for  the  Evangelical  type  of  piety  he  had  wit¬ 
nessed  at  home  stayed  with  him  all  his  life,  and  served 
as  a  corrective  of  later  High  Church  opinions. 

At  eighteen  he  was  sent  up  to  Cambridge  University, 
into  a  changed  atmosphere,  where  the  center  of  debate 
was  not  the  marks  of  the  Beast  but  the  marks  of  the 
true  church.  Here  he  came  under  the  influence  of  Fred¬ 
erick  Denison  Maurice,  a  Broad  rather  than  High  Church 
theologian.  And  so  it  happened  that  as  Mr.  Ellerton  fell 
in  gradually  with  the  views  of  the  new  High  Church 
Party,  his  Evangelical  heritage  and  the  liberal  doctrines 
of  Maurice  diluted  them.  He  was  never  tempted  to  go 
to  such  extremes  as  Dr.  Neale. 


SAVIOUR,  AGAIN  TO  THY  DEAR  NAME  WE  RAISE  249 

In  these  matters  of  opinion  Mr.  Ellerton,  like  most 
of  us,  was  a  mirror  rather  than  a  shining  light,  reflecting 
more  or  less  of  surrounding  influences.  So  far  as  his 


THE  REV.  JOHN  ELLERT0N 

outward  career  is  concerned  he  was  simply  a  typical 
English  country  parson,  important  in  his  parish,  not 
widely  influential  outside:  but  something  more  than  we 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


250 

mean  when  in  this  country  we  speak  of  a  country 
minister. 

In  England  the  Church  is  a  part  of  the  political  sys¬ 
tem.  The  whole  surface  is  plotted  into  a  network  of 
parishes,  each  with  a  parish  church  and  a  parish  clergy¬ 
man,  supported  by  taxes  levied  on  the  products  of  soil 
and  industry.  At  its  best  the  system  secures  to  each 
parish  the  residence  of  a  refined  and  educated  gentle¬ 
man  as  a  friend  of  the  poor  and  a  sort  of  spiritual  squire ; 
the  parson  has  a  social  status  and  his  lot  often  falls  in 
very  pleasant  places.  There  are  hard  places,  too;  par¬ 
ishes  remote,  rude,  or  too  poor  to  furnish  even  a  decent 
living,  or  where  the  only  people  who  might  make  a  con¬ 
gregation  in  the  parish  church  prefer  to  go  to  dissenting 
chapels,  or  the  man  who  owns  perhaps  the  whole  parish 
is  hostile  to  the  church  or  parson. 

Mr.  Ellerton’s  lot  lay  largely  in  obscure  but  appar¬ 
ently  not  hard  places.  He  began  in  1850  with  three 
years  in  a  Sussex  village,  followed  by  an  assistant  min¬ 
istry  in  one  of  the  Brighton  churches.  From  there  he 
passed  on  to  one  country  parish  and  another,  four  in  all. 
He  was  stricken  with  paralysis  at  the  end  of  1891,  re¬ 
tired  to  Torquay  and  died  there  on  June  15,  1893.  When 
lying  disabled  he  was  nominated  to  a  prebendary’s  stall 
of  St.  Alban’s  Cathedral,  the  only  recognition  that  ever 
came  to  him ;  an  honor  empty  enough,  but  entitling  him 
under  some  peculiar  custom  of  that  cathedral  to  be  ad¬ 
dressed  during  the  last  months  of  his  illness  as  “  Canon  ” 
Ellerton. 


SAVIOUR,  AGAIN  TO  THY  DEAR  NAME  WE  RAISE  251 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

Always  and  everywhere  Mr.  Ellerton  was  first  of  all 
the  faithful  parson,  but  he  had  also  ample  opportunity 
to  cultivate  a  hobby.  And  his  hobby  was  hymns.  From 
being  a  hobby  they  grew  into  a  controlling  interest  of 


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AUTOGRAPH  OF  THE  HYMN 

his  life  —  the  study  of  hymns,  the  preparation  of  hymn 
books,  and  most  of  all  hymn  writing.  He  had  begun 
writing  them  for  his  Sunday  school  while  assistant  at 
Brighton,  just  as  Dr.  Bonar  had  done  while  assistant 
at  Leith ;  and,  like  Dr.  Bonar  again,  he  published  a  chil- 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


252 

dren’s  hymn  book.  He  went  on  writing  hymns  through¬ 
out  his  life,  and  five  years  before  his  death  gathered  them 
into  a  volume  of  Hymns  original  and  translated.  They 
were  not  sudden  inspirations  or  flashes  of  poetic  fire. 
They  were  planned  and  wrought  as  contributions  to  the 
new  hymnody  of  his  Church;  sometimes  to  fit  an  occa¬ 
sion,  sometimes  to  supply  a  gap  in  the  provision  for  spe¬ 
cial  days  of  the  Prayer  Book. 

“  Saviour,  again  to  Thy  dear  Name  we  raise  ”  was 
written  at  Crewe  Green  in  1866,  to  be  sung  at  a  festival 
of  parish  choirs  held  in  Nantwich.  Like  others  of  his 
hymns  it  was  composed  to  fit  a  particular  tune  that 
took  his  fancy  and  ran  in  his  head;  in  this  case  a  tune 
called  “  St.  Agnes  ”  he  found  in  a  recently  published  col¬ 
lection  of  Edward  H.  Thorne.  Mr.  F.  A.  Jones,  who 
made  a  diligent  search  for  the  original  manuscripts  of 
familiar  hymns,  tells  us  it  was  written  on  the  reverse  of 
a  leaf  of  the  sermon  preached  the  Sunday  before,  and 
that  in  the  first  draft  the  opening  line  read: 

“  Father,  once  more  before  we  part,  we  raise.” 

As  Mr.  Ellerton  wrote  it,  there  were  six  verses;  at  one 
time  or  another  it  has  been  revised,  by  his  own  hand 
and  the  hands  of  other  people  also,  so  that  several  dif¬ 
fering  texts  are  current.  When  that  1868  Appendix  to 
Hymns  ancient  and  modern  was  planned  (the  one  that 
took  in  some  of  Dr.  Neale’s  hymns  of  the  Greek  Church), 
Mr.  Ellerton  sent  in  this  hymn  to  the  editors,  and  either 
he  or  they  prepared  the  abridgment  in  four  verses  as 
there  printed,  which  is  still  the  most  familiar  text.  A 
little  later  he  became  one  of  the  editors  of  the  rival 
Church  Hymns  of  1871  and  prepared  for  it  a  different 
form  of  the  hymn,  a  facsimile  of  which  is  here  given. 


SAVIOUR ,  AGAIN  TO  THY  DEAR  NAME  WE  RAISE  253 

One  wonders  why  he  wished  the  “  approaching  night  ” 
verse  to  have  precedence  over  the  “  homeward  way  ” 
verse,  and  why  he  preferred  the  harsh  “  through  this  ap¬ 
proaching  night  ”  to  “  through  the  coming  night.”  But 
even  hymn  writers  have  their  little  obstinacies. 

With  the  hymn  thus  lodged  in  both  the  important 
hymnals,  its  future  in  the  Church  of  England  was  secure. 
When  it  was  taken  from  Hymns  ancient  and  modern 
into  the  Presbyterian  Hymnal  published  at  Philadelphia 
in  1874,  many  good  Presbyterians,  who  knew  very  little 
about  the  Oxford  Movement  and  had  supposed  that 
Watts,  the  Wesleys  and  the  Evangelicals  wrote  all  the 
good  hymns,  must  have  wondered  sometimes  from  what 
source  the  editor  of  their  new  book  drew  such  hymns  as 
this  and  “  Jerusalem  the  golden  ”  and  “  The  Church’s 
one  Foundation.” 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  Mr.  Ellerton  was  among  the  most  accomplished  of 
the  men  who  wrote  churchly  hymns  in  the  latter  half  of 
the  nineteenth  century.  The  whole  number  of  his  is 
just  short  of  a  hundred,  and  many  of  them  are  in  actual 
use.  All  are  marked  by  deep  reverence  and  by  feeling 
carefully  restrained  within  the  limits  of  what  may  be 
expected  from  average  worshipers.  They  vary  much  in 
quality,  and  some  of  those  for  saints’  days  and  special 
occasions  carry  marks  of  manufacture.  Whence  indeed 
could  one  draw  inspiration  for  the  commemoration  of 
St.  Bartholomew,  of  whom  we  do  not  know  a  thing,  or 
for  “  Catechising  ”  or  for  “  The  Sunday  after  a  funeral  ”  ? 

Of  the  thirteen  of  Ellerton’s  hymns  (aside  from  the 
two  in  which  he  had  some  part)  in  The  Hymnal  revised 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


254 

which  are  the  best?  And  are  there  any  that  could  be 
spared  ? 

2.  Anyone  interested  in  the  text  of  the  hymn  should 
examine  the  form  given  in  The  New  Hymnal  of  the 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church  (1916).  It  is  in  four  verses 
made  up  from  the  six  as  originally  written,  and  the 
third  verse  much  extends  the  scope  of  the  peace  prayed 
for,  as  follows: 

Grant  us  Thy  peace  throughout  our  earthly  life; 

Peace  to  Thy  Church  from  error  and  from  strife; 

Peace  to  our  land,  the  fruit  of  truth  and  love; 

Peace  in  each  heart,  Thy  Spirit  from  above. 

3.  Of  the  tunes  for  this  hymn  in  The  Hymnal  revised, 
“  Pax  Dei  ”  is  the  original  setting  composed  by  Dr. 
Dykes  for  the  Appendix  of  1868;  and  Mr.  F.  A.  Jones 
quotes  Mrs.  Ellerton  as  saying  that  her  husband  was  so 
delighted  with  it  that  he  sent  the  composer  a  letter  of 
thanks.  It  has  been  retained  in  all  later  issues  of  Hymns 
ancient  and  modern,  amounting  now  to  many  millions  of 
copies,  and  is  sung  the  wide  world  over. 

Dr.  Hopkins’  “  Ellers,”  originally  named  “  Benedic¬ 
tion,”  and  written  in  1869  for  unison  singing  with  varied 
harmonies,  was  chosen  for  Church  Hymns,  and  is  cer¬ 
tainly  an  ideal  tune  for  congregational  use.  Mr.  Ellerton 
told  his  biographer  that  he  had  come  to  prefer  it  (when 
sung  in  unison)  to  Dr.  Dykes’s  tune.  Having  both 
before  us  we  are  as  free  as  Mr.  Ellerton  was  to  make 
our  personal  choice  —  and  to  change  it. 


XXII 

THE  CHURCH’S  ONE  FOUNDATION 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  The  Church’s  one  Foundation 

Is  Jesus  Christ  her  Lord; 

She  is  His  new  creation 
By  water  and  the  word: 

From  heaven  He  came  and  sought  her 
•  To  be  His  holy  Bride; 

With  His  own  blood  He  bought  her, 

And  for  her  life  He  died. 

2  Elect  from  every  nation, 

Yet  one  o’er  all  the  earth, 

Her  charter  of  salvation 

One  Lord,  one  faith,  one  birth; 

One  holy  Name  she  blesses, 

Partakes  one  holy  food, 

And  to  one  hope  she  presses, 

With  every  grace  endued. 

3  Though  with  a  scornful  wonder 

Men  see  her  sore  oppressed, 

By  schisms  rent  asunder, 

By  heresies  distressed, 

Yet  saints  their  watch  are  keeping, 

Their  cry  goes  up,  “How  long?” 

And  soon  the  night  of  weeping 
Shall  be  the  morn  of  song. 

4  ’Mid  toil  and  tribulation, 

And  tumult  of  her  war, 

She  waits  the  consummation 
Of  peace  for  evermore; 


255 


256 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


Till  with  the  vision  glorious 
Her  longing  eyes  are  blest, 

And  the  great  Church  victorious 
Shall  be  the  Church  at  rest. 

5  Yet  she  on  earth  hath  union 
With  God  the  Three  in  One, 

And  mystic  sweet  communion 
With  those  whose  rest  is  won: 

O  happy  ones  and  holy! 

Lord,  give  us  grace  that  we, 

Like  them  the  meek  and  lowly, 

On  high  may  dwell  with  Thee. 

Rev.  Samuel  John  Stone,  1866 

\  * 

Note:  As  originally  printed  in  the  author’s  Lyra  Fidelium  the 
hymn  had  seven  verses.  Of  these  the  third  (hereinafter  quoted)  is 
here  omitted  as  polemical,  and  the  sixth  and  seventh  are  combined, 
greatly  to  their  advantage,  in  one  verse.  There  is,  however,  no 
change  in  the  text  itself. 


Does  it  not  seem  quaint  that  a  pronounced  High 
Churchman,  wishing  to  teach  his  people  what  the  Church 
really  is,  should  write  for  them  a  hymn  embodying  prac¬ 
tically  every  doctrine  concerning  the  Church  he  held 
most  dear  (its  divine  origin,  its  unbroken  continuity,  its 
catholicity  and  essential  unity,  its  orthodoxy,  its  sacra¬ 
mental  grace,  its  communion  with  God  and  with  the 
departed  saints,  its  militancy  and  final  triumph),  and 
then  that  his  hymn  should  be  welcomed  not  only  by  his 
own  party  but  by  his  Low  Church  opponents,  and  by 
almost  all  communions  or  denominations  or  sects  that  be¬ 
lieve  in  the  Church  at  all,  quite  without  regard  to  the 
particular  opinions  they  hold  and  promulgate  as  to 
church  history  and  doctrine,  church  authority,  or  church 
organization  ? 


THE  CHURCH’S  ONE  FOUNDATION 


257 

It  is  indeed  a  very  extraordinary  happening;  and  the 
writer  has  sometimes  asked  himself  by  what  magic  it 
came  about.  Was  the  author  “  Catholic  ”  in  a  larger 
sense  than  he  was  aware  of?  It  is  possible.  Or  are  all 
the  denominations  of  Christians  becoming  High  Church  ? 
No:  that  could  not  be  claimed,  though  all  or  most  have 
felt  the  effects  of  the  Oxford  Movement.  The  writer 
has  concluded  that  the  explanation  of  the  hymn’s  gen¬ 
eral  acceptance  lies  in  the  fact  that  all  its  statements  of 
doctrine  are  made  in  the  words  and  phrases  of  Scripture 
itself,  and  thus  every  denomination  is  left  free  to  in¬ 
terpret  the  statements  of  the  hymn  in  the  same  terms 
in  which  it  interprets  the  texts  on  which  those  statements 
are  based. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

This  hymn  was  written  by  the  Rev.  Samuel  John 
Stone,  then  beginning  his  ministry  as  assistant  or  curate 
in  the  town  of  Windsor.  Windsor  ii)  on  the  Thames, 
twenty-one  miles  from  London,  with  the  royal  castle 
looking  down  upon  it,  and  across  the  river,  a  bit  to  the 
north,  Eton  College,  the  most  famous  boys’  school  in 
England.  Mr.  Stone’s  work  was  largely  among  the 
poorer  people  in  the  outskirts,  where  he  had  a  mission 
chapel  of  his  own. 

He  has  said  that  the  hymn  really  grew  out  of  the 
state  of  feeling  aroused  by  the  “  Colenso  Controversy.” 
Bishop  Colenso,  of  South  Africa,  had  published  a  book 
denying  the  historical  accuracy  of  the  first  five  books 
of  the  Bible,  known  as  the  Pentateuch.  His  metropoli¬ 
tan  bishop,  Dr.  Gray,  deposed  him  from  office,  and 
when  an  appeal  to  England  was  taken,  Mr.  Stone  shared 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


258 

the  intense  excitement  of  the  controversy  that  followed. 
He  felt  that  Colenso  was  undermining  “  the  Catholic 
faith,”  approved  of  Bishop  Gray’s  course,  and  deplored 
the  schism  Colenso’s  followers  made  in  the  South  Afri¬ 
can  Church. 

That  accounts  for  a  heated  verse  in  the  hymn  as  first 
printed,  now  happily  dropped  out: 

“  The  Church  shall  never  perish ! 

Her  dear  Lord  to  defend, 

To  guide,  sustain,  and  cherish 
Is  with  her  to  the  end: 

Though  there  be  those  who  hate  her, 

And  false  sons  in  her  pale, 

Against  or  foe  or  traitor 
She  ever  shall  prevail:  ” 

and  also  for  the  lines  still  retained: 

“  Though  with  a  scornful  wonder 
Men  see  her  sore  oppressed, 

By  schisms  rent  asunder, 

By  heresies  distrest:  ” 

So  much  for  the  hymn’s  origin;  and  now  for  the  use 
which  its  author  found  for  it.  He  noticed  that  the  cot¬ 
tagers  at  Windsor  were  given  to  saying  the  Apostles’ 
Creed  as  one  of  their  private  prayers,  though  without 
clear  ideas  of  what  its  various  articles  meant.  This  sug¬ 
gested  the  writing  of  a  series  of  hymns  that  would  ex¬ 
plain  them,  and  could  be  used  at  home  or  in  the  chapel. 
And  he  printed  in  1866  Lyra  Fidelium.  Twelve  Hymns 
on  the  twelve  articles  of  the  Apostles’  Creed.  By  S.  J. 
Stone ,  B.  A.,  Curate  of  Windsor.  “The  Church’s  one 
Foundation  ”  is  headed: 


THE  CHURCH’S  ONE  FOUNDATION 


259 


ARTICLE  IX. 

“  The  Holy  Catholic  Church :  the  Communion  of  Saints.” 

“  He  is  the  Head  of  the  Body,  the  Church.” 

and  on  the  opposite  page  is  a  prose  “  Summary  of  Truths 
confessed  in  Article  IX,”  followed  by  what  the  West¬ 
minster  Catechism  would  call  “  the  Scripture  proofs.” 


7 7. 


r  /J 


7 


6a 


AUTOGRAPH  LINES  OF  THE  HYMN 


How  far  Mr.  Stone’s  cottagers  were  edified  we  do  not 
know,  but  the  hymn  was  taken  into  that  same  1868 
Appendix  to  Hymns  ancient  and  modern  of  which  we 
have  already  heard,  and  there  set  to  the  tune  “  Aurelia  ” 
to  which  it  has  been  sung  ever  since.  The  statement 
that  “  Aurelia  ”  was  composed  for  these  words  is  mis¬ 
taken.  It  was  written  earlier  as  a  setting  for  “  Jerusa¬ 
lem  the  golden.”  The  conjunction  of  hymn  and  tune 
was  one  of  many  happy  things  done  by  the  editors  of  the 
Appendix,  and  so  joined  they  at  once  proceeded  on  their 
triumphant  way  to  become  the  marching  song  of  the 
Church.  The  only  danger  that  threatens  the  continu¬ 
ance  of  that  career  is  the  fatigue  that  waits  on  too  con¬ 
stant  repetition.  An  English  archbishop  said  that 


2 6o  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

wherever  called  to  open  or  dedicate  a  church,  he  could 
always  count  on  two  things  —  cold  chicken  and  “  The 
Church’s  one  Foundation.”  To  which  the  obvious  retort 
is,  “  There  is  nothing  better.” 

“A  VERAY  PARFIT  GENTIL  KNIGHT  ” 

We  could  wish  for  a  portrait  of  the  young  curate  who 
wrote  the  hymn.  Perhaps  the  one  we  have  of  his  full 
maturity  is  not  less  interesting.  It  is  the  photograph  of 
a  sturdy,  full-blooded,  broad-shouldered  and  athletic 
English  gentleman  (English  all  over).  His  clothes  re¬ 
veal  the  clergyman:  we  might  have  thought  him  an  ad¬ 
miral.  A  physiognomist  could  “  deduce  ”  a  good  deal 
more  from  the  leonine  moulding  of  the  head,  the  strong 
straight  nose,  the  piercing  but  kindly  eye  and  general 
air  of  command:  more  yet  if  the  photographer  had  not 
obliterated  the  lines  of  character  and  experience,  and 
the  little  crinkles  of  humor  also  that  were  surely  there. 

It  is  no  surprise  to  learn  that  he  had  a  quick  temper, 
and  that  like  his  “  gentle  ”  Master,  who  laid  the  whip 
on  the  money  changers,  he  was  capable  of  a  righteous 
wrath  that  was  serious.  There  was  an  occasion  in  a 
lonely  East  End  locality  when  he  came  upon  three  black¬ 
guards  attacking  a  poor  unfriended  girl.  Stone  heard 
her  cries,  rushed  to  her  help,  knocked  out  the  first 
man  with  one  blow,  turned  to  the  second  and  trounced 
him  until  he  cried  for  mercy,  and  ever  after  regretted 
that  the  third  got  off  before  he  could  catch  him.  He  told 
a  companion  he  thanked  God  he  had  learned  to  use  his 
fists  at  Charterhouse  and  would  have  given  five  pounds 
to  get  at  the  third  rascal’s  hide.  Then,  seeing  a  quiz¬ 
zical  look  in  his  companion’s  eye  and  recalling  clerical 


THE  REV.  SAMUEL  JOHN  STONE 


262  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

proprieties,  he  burst  into  hearty  laughter  directed  wholly 
against  himself.  We  all  love  Don  Quixote. 

And  Mr.  Stone  was  nearer  the  ideal  of  a  knight,  with 
his  innate  purity  of  soul,  his  chivalry,  his  hatred  of 
wrong,  his  unselfishness,  and  his  spotless  life,  than  he 
was  to  the  type  of  the  “  muscular  Christian.”  He  had 
a  sensitive  temperament,  “  the  muscles  of  a  prize-fighter 
and  the  nerves  of  a  violin,”  his  doctor  said:  he  was 
emotional  and  excitable,  with  an  active  brain  and  a  very 
tender  heart.  It  was  his  way  to  idealize  his  friends,  his 
country,  his  church,  and  all  womankind ;  but  especially 
his  Queen,  the  type  to  him  of  motherhood  and  sover¬ 
eignty  in  one,  whom  he  loved  and  extolled,  and  if  need 
be  defended,  with  a  boyish  devotion  and  heat. 

The  boy  that  continued  to  live  in  him  till  pretty  near 
the  end  was  born  at  Whitmore,  Staffordshire,  in  April, 
1839,  and  had  the  good  fortune  for  the  first  thirteen  years 
of  his  life  to  be  a  country  boy;  his  father  being  parson 
of  one  and  another  rural  parish.  Then  his  family  moved 
to  London,  and  he  was  sent  to  the  same  Charterhouse 
that  Thackeray  loved  and  made  famous.  From  there 
he  went  to  Pembroke  College,  Oxford,  and  distinguished 
himself  in  athletics  at  least,  becoming  captain  of  his 
college  boat,  entered  heartily  into  the  Volunteer  Move¬ 
ment  just  beginning,  and  made  a  try  for  the  poetry  prize. 
The  boy’s  whole  bent  was  toward  soldiering,  and  it  was 
only  the  “  one  clear  call  for  me  ”  that  turned  the  man’s 
face  toward  the  ministry. 

His  began  in  1862  with  a  curacy  at  Windsor  of  nearly 
eight  years.  Then  he  went  back  to  London  to  help  his 
father  in  an  East  End  parish,  St.  Paul’s,  Haggerston.  It 
was  a  thickly  populated  parish  without  a  well-to-do 
person  within  its  bounds,  its  worst  street  on  the  lowest 


THE  CHURCH’S  ONE  FOUNDATION  263 

stratum  of  London  poverty.  And  in  it  Mr.  Stone,  first 
as  his  father’s  assistant  and  then  as  his  successor,  spent 
twenty  years  of  pastoral  life,  unselfishly  laboring  from 
early  morning  till  late  at  night  to  meet  the  spiritual 
needs  of  his  parishioners,  to  educate  their  children  in  the 
parish  schools,  and  to  get  a  bit  of  brightness  into  hard 
lives.  His  combination  of  virility  and  sympathy  gave 
him  real  power  over  the  people.  He  was  a  churchman 
rather  than  a  missionary,  a  shepherd  rather  than  an  evan¬ 
gelist;  and  St.  Paul’s,  Haggerston,  was  the  door  of  the 
fold.  But  there  was  none  of  the  ritualism  there  with 
which  many  earnest  workers  appeal  to  the  East  End. 

In  a  bit  of  garden  back  of  the  parsonage  is  a  dog’s 
grave,  and  this  epitaph: 

In  the  centre  of  this  lawn  lies 
SANCHO 

a  gentleman  in  all  but  humanity;  thoroughbred, 
single  in  mind,  true  of  heart;  for  seventeen  years 
the  faithful  and  affectionate  friend  of  his  master, 
who  loved  him,  and  now  for  him  “  faintly  trusts 
the  larger  Hope,”  contained,  it  may  be,  in  Romans 

viii.  19-21. 

He  died  April  26,  1883. 

It  is  a  memorial  of  Mr.  Stone  as  well  as  of  Sancho.  And 
it  reminds  us  of  a  similar  but  much  statelier  monument 
to  a  dog  in  the  garden  of  one  of  our  Walnut  Street  man¬ 
sions  in  Philadelphia,  whose  doors  have  never  opened 
since  the  dog’s  master  passed  through  them,  now  many 
years  ago. 

By  1890  Mr.  Stone  had  worn  himself  out.  An  easier 
post  was  found  for  him  in  one  of  the  surviving  churches 
of  old  London  “  City,”  All  Hallows,  London  Wall ;  a 
quaint,  musty  little  church  packed  away  amid  great 


264  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

blocks  of  offices  and  warehouses,  which  he  first  made 
beautiful  and  then  proceeded  to  make  useful,  in  a  parish 
swarming  with  workers  all  day  and  at  night  populated 
only  by  care-takers  and  their  families.  One  use  he 
made  of  the  building  was  criticized,  but  was  much  ap¬ 
preciated  by  a  great  number  of  girls  who  for  economy’s 
sake  came  up  to  Liverpool  Street  by  the  early  workmen’s 
trains  and  had  to  wander  about  the  streets  till  their 
places  of  work  were  opened.  He  threw  the  church  open 
from  6:30  to  8:30  each  morning  as  a  haven  in  which 
they  could  sit  and  wait.  Reading  of  books  (not  news¬ 
papers)  and  sewing  were  allowed  but  no  talking  or  eat¬ 
ing.  And  to  many  of  the  girls  the  house  of  rest  became 
a  house  of  prayer. 

For  the  last  of  his  ten  years  at  All  Hallows  Mr.  Stone 
endured  the  increasing  agonies  of  cancer,  and  he  died 
on  November  19,  1900.  On  the  23rd  many  of  the  throng¬ 
ing  business  men  who  hurried  by  the  little  church  must 
have  caught  the  strains  of  his  funeral  hymn,  “  The 
Church’s  one  Foundation.” 

Among  his  devoted  friends  Mr.  Stone  had  one,  an 
accomplished  man  of  letters,  Mr.  Coulson  Kernahan. 
Resolving  to  attempt  some  memorial  of  a  man  whom  he 
esteemed  so  great,  Mr.  Kernahan  waited  sixteen  years, 
for  fear  that  his  affection  would  tempt  him  to  exag¬ 
gerate,  and  then  printed  a  graphic  characterization  of 
Mr.  Stone,  which  the  present  writer  wishes  could  be 
read  by  all  young  people  who  feel  no  impulse  to  follow 
in  the  train  of  anaemic  saints  but  can  recognize  a  hero 
even  under  a  tall  hat. 

Mr.  Kernahan,  with  a  true  artist’s  instinct,  discloses 
frankly  those  frailties  or  limitations  that  reveal  his 
friend  as  human,  and,  as  an  essential  part  of  him,  be- 


THE  CHURCH’S  ONE  FOUNDATION  265 

come  almost  lovable :  the  fixedness  of  his  ideas ;  the  per¬ 
fect  confidence  in  his  own  beliefs  and  opinions  that  made 
him  seem  obstinate ;  the  irascibility  of  overstrained 
nerves ;  an  impatience  of  opposition  that  made  him  some¬ 
times  overbearing;  a  certain  hot-headedness  that  inter¬ 
fered  with  cool  judgment;  his  unbending  Toryism  and 
stiff  churchmanship  and  incapacity  of  understanding 
how  an  English  gentleman  could  feel  otherwise;  and  a 
constitutional  inability  to  see  anything  wrong  in  those 
he  loved  and  trusted  that  occasionally  got  him  into 
trouble. 

And  then,  over  these  little  shadows  (how  slight  they 
are  made  to  seem)  Mr.  Kernahan  throws  the  light  of 
his  friend’s  moral  splendor  in  a  tribute  as  heartfelt  and 
as  noble  as  was  ever  given  to  mortal  man : 

“  So  brave  of  heart  was  he  as  to  make  possible  for  us 
the  courage  of  a  Coeur  de  Lion,  so  knightly  of  nature 
as  to  make  possible  the  honor  of  an  Arthur  or  a  Galahad, 
so  nearly  stainless  in  the  standard  he  set  himself,  in  the 
standard  he  attained,  as  to  come,  as  near  as  human  flesh 
and  blood  can  come,  almost  to  making  possible  the 
purity  of  the  Christ.” 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  There  is  a  small  group  of  familiar  hymns  that  do 
not  take  the  form  of  praise  or  prayer  or  exhortation,  but 
the  form  of  teaching.  They  are  called  didactic  hymns, 
and  consist  of  a  series  of  statements  setting  forth  some 
doctrine.  This,  setting  forth  the  doctrine  of  the  Church, 
Bishop  Wordsworth’s  “  Gracious  Spirit,  Holy  Ghost,” 
expounding  the  doctrine  of  Love,  and  his  “  O  day  of 
rest  and  gladness,”  setting  forth  the  history  and  benefits 
of  the  Christian  Sunday,  are  examples. 


266 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


The  number  of  successful  didactic  hymns  is  small.  It 
takes  a  cunning  hand  and  a  warm  glow  to  overcome  our 
instinct  against  going  to  school  when  we  are  asked  to 
sing  praise.  Of  Mr.  Stone’s  twelve  hymns  on  the  Creed, 
only  this  and  “  Weary  of  earth  and  laden  with  my  sin  ” 
have  come  into  use,  and  the  latter  is  hardly  didactic. 
But  “  The  Church’s  one  Foundation  ”  uses  this  form 
and  manner  triumphantly.  What  other  didactic  hymns 
are  familiar? 

2.  When  Mr.  Stone  printed  Lyra  Fidelium  for  his  cot¬ 
tagers,  against  each  line  or  couplet  of  the  hymns  he  set 
on  the  opposite  page  the  texts  on  which  it  was  based. 
Here  are  the  four  texts  set  opposite  the  four  couplets  of 
the  first  verse  of  our  hymn. 

“  Other  foundation  can  no  man  lay  than  is  laid,  which  is  Jesus 
Christ.” 

“  Except  a  man  be  born  of  water  and  of  the  Spirit,  he  cannot 
enter  into  the  kingdom  of  God.” 

“  Even  as  Christ  also  loved  the  Church  and  gave  Himself  for  it, 
that  He  might  sanctify  and  cleanse  it.” 

“  The  Church  of  God  which  He  purchased  with  His  own  Blood.” 

Some  readers  might  find  an  interest  in  supplying 
equally  suitable  “  proof  texts  ”  for  the  other  verses. 

3.  The  weaving  of  Scriptural  truth  and  church  doctrine 
into  strains  of  song  was  Mr.  Stone’s  special  gift  in  hymn 
writing.  His  hymns,  as  gathered  shortly  before  his 
death,  number  fifty-five,  many  of  which  are  in  use  in  his 
own  communion,  not  many  outside  of  it.  He  published 
also  three  volumes  of  poetry,  creditable  to  his  head 
and  heart;  but  the  writer  would  not  care  to  have  Mr. 
Kernahan  ask  him  how  many  of  the  leaves  in  his  copies 


THE  CHURCH’S  ONE  FOUNDATION  267 

have  been  cut  open.  He  does  not  find  Mr.  Stone’s  poetry 
at  all  convincing,  and  he  thinks  it  would  be  a  mistake  to 
regard  “  The  Church’s  one  Foundation  ”  as  a  poem.  It 
is  good  verse  and  full  of  feeling,  but  of  spiritual  and  not 
poetic  feeling.  So  the  writer  thinks,  but  the  question  is 
open  for  discussion:  remembering,  however,  that  while 
rhythm  makes  verse  only  imagination  makes  poetry. 


XXIII 

O  LOVE  THAT  WILT  NOT  LET  ME  GO 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  O  Love  that  wilt  not  let  me  go, 

I  rest  my  weary  soul  in  Thee; 

I  give  Thee  back  the  life  I  owe, 

That  in  Thine  ocean  depths  its  flow 
May  richer,  fuller  be. 

2  O  Light  that  followest  all  my  way, 

I  yield  my  flickering  torch  to  Thee; 

My  heart  restores  its  borrowed  ray, 

That  in  Thy  sunshine’s  blaze  its  day 
May  brighter,  fairer  be. 

¥ 

3  O  Joy  that  seekest  me  through  pain 

I  cannot  close  my  heart  to  Thee; 

I  trace  the  rainbow  through  the  rain, 

And  feel  the  promise  is  not  vain 
That  morn  shall  tearless  be. 

4  O  Cross  that  liftest  up  my  head, 

I  dare  not  ask  to  fly  from  Thee; 

I  lay  in  dust  life’s  glory  dead, 

And  from  the  ground  there  blossoms  red 
Life  that  shall  endless  be. 

Rev.  George  Matheson,  1882 

Note:  The  text  is  taken  from  The  Scottish  Hymnal  of  1885,  with 
the  change  in  one  line  made  for  that  book  by  the  author. 

268 


O  LOVE  THAT  WILT  NOT  LET  ME  GO  269 

One  of  the  effects  of  the  High  Church  Movement  in 
Episcopalian  England,  whose  hymns  we  have  been  study¬ 
ing,  was  to  make  a  considerable  number  of  the  clergy  of 
Presbyterian  Scotland  very  much  dissatisfied  with  the 
architecture  and  worship  of  their  parish  churches  and  the 
meager  allowance  of  hymns  which  supplemented  the 
metrical  Psalms.  They  formed  a  Church  Service  So¬ 
ciety  which  brought  about  many  changes,  and  they  put 
through  The  Scottish  Hymnal ,  with  Dr.  Monk,  who  had 
done  such  great  things  in  Hymns  ancient  and  modern , 
in  charge  of  its  musical  side.  This  book  changed  the 
face  of  hymnody  in  the  Church  of  Scotland  to  the 
Anglican  model.  The  enlarged  edition  of  the  book  in 
1885  gave  to  the  Church  for  the  first  time  the  hymn 
we  are  now  studying  with  its  “  proper  tune  ” ;  the  words 
having  appeared  in  a  church  periodical  a  year  or  so  be¬ 
fore.  So  there  is  just  that  much  connection  (and  no 
more)  between  the  High  Church  Movement  and  the 
present  hymn. 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

The  hymn  was  written  by  the  Rev.  George  Matheson, 
minister  of  the  parish  of  Innellan  in  the  Church  of 
Scotland. 

Dr.  Matheson  was  a  large  and  many-sided  personality, 
of  a  powerful  mind  touched  with  genius,  of  great  at¬ 
tainments  and  with  a  distinguished  career.  It  may 
therefore  seem  far  fetched  to  present  him  here  as  the 
author  of  a  single  hymn,  which  in  fact  was  thrown  off  in 
a  few  minutes,  as  though  the  hymn  was  the  center  of  his 
career  and  his  most  characteristic  performance.  And 
yet  such  is  the  simple  truth. 


270  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

Very  much  the  same  thing  happened  in  the  case  of  the 
great  poet,  Tennyson,  to  whom  “  Sunset  and  Evening 
Star  ”  came  without  volition  and  was  also  thrown  off  in 
a  few  minutes.  The  poet  at  once  recognized  it  as  the 
crown  of  his  art  and  the  measure  of  his  faith,  and  di¬ 
rected  that  it  be  printed  at  the  close  of  every  edition  of 
his  works,  as  their  culmination. 

Dr.  Matheson’s  whole  personality  and  deepest  experi¬ 
ences  are  behind  the  hymn:  it  is  the  most  perfect 
expression  of  the  man  at  his  highest  :  and  it  is  the  high- 
water  mark  in  his  career  as  a  writer.  He  was  constantly 
printing  religious  verses,  and  yet  he  knew  quite  well 
that  this  hymn  was  a  thing  apart.  Its  writing,  he  said, 
was  “  to  me  a  unique  experience.  I  have  no  natural 
gift  of  rhythm.  All  the  other  verses  I  have  ever  written 
are  manufactured  articles ;  this  came  like  a  dayspring 
from  on  high.  I  have  never  been  able  to  gain  once  more 
the  same  fervor  in  verse.” 

We  have  his  own  account  of  the  circumstances: 

“  My  hymn  was  composed  in  the  manse  of  Innellan, 
on  the  evening  of  6th  June,  1882.  I  was  at  that  time 
alone.  It  was  the  day  of  my  sister’s  marriage,  and  the 
rest  of  the  family  were  staying  over  night  in  Glasgow. 
Something  had  happened  to  me,  which  was  known  only 
to  myself,  and  which  caused  me  the  most  severe  mental 
suffering.  The  hymn  was  the  fruit  of  that  suffering.  It 
was  the  quickest  bit  of  work  I  ever  did  in  my  life.  I 
had  the  impression  rather  of  having  it  dictated  to  me  by 
some  inward  voice  than  of  working  it  out  myself.  I  am 
quite  sure  that  the  whole  work  was  completed  in  five 
minutes,  and  equally  sure  that  it  never  received  at  my 
hands  any  retouching  or  correction.  The  Hymnal  Com¬ 
mittee  of  the  Church  of  Scotland  desired  the  change  of 


O  LOVE  THAT  WILT  NOT  LET  ME  GO 


271 

one  word.  I  had  written  originally  ‘  I  climbed  the  rain¬ 
bow  in  the  rain.’  They  objected  to  the  word  ‘  climb  5 
and  I  put  in  4  trace.’  ” 

The  nature  of  the  personal  sorrow  behind  the  hymn 
Dr.  Matheson  did  not  disclose,  and  we  may  respect  his 
reticence.  The  statement  one  has  read  that  it  was  the 
failure  of  the  love  of  the  woman  to  whom  he  was  engaged 
on  learning  the  doctor’s  verdict  of  impending  blindness, 
her  curt  refusal  “  to  go  through  life  with  a  blind  man,” 
may  be  ignored,  as  he  had  been  “  a  blind  man  ”  for 
twenty-five  years. 

The  success  of  the  hymn  was  largely  due  to  the 
tune  “  St.  Margaret,”  written  for  it  by  Dr.  Albert  L. 
Peace,  then  organist  of  Glasgow  Cathedral  and  musical 
editor  of  The  Scottish  Hymnal  of  1885.  He  did  for 
Matheson’s  words  what  Dr.  Dykes’s  “  Lux  Benigna  ” 
did  for  Cardinal  Newman’s  “  Lead,  kindly  Light.”  It 
was  his  habit  to  carry  about  with  him  the  words  of  the 
hymns  for  which  tunes  were  needed.  Sitting  on  the 
sands  of  Arran  and  reading  these,  he  tells  us,  the  tune 
came  upon  him  like  a  flash,  and,  taking  out  his  pencil, 
he  wrote  it  off  in  a  few  minutes. 

For  a  while  the  use  of  the  hymn  was  confined  to  the 
Church  of  Scotland  and  its  preaching  stations  on  the  con¬ 
tinent  of  Europe  and  elsewhere.  From  more  than  one 
of  these  word  came  to  the  present  writer,  while  prepar¬ 
ing  The  Hymnal  of  1895,  of  the  deep  impression  hymn 
and  music  had  made  upon  one  or  another  American 
tourist,  with  an  earnest  request  that  they  might  not  fail 
of  a  place  in  the  new  book.  Such  a  letter  from  as  far 
as  Cairo,  dated  in  April  of  1895,  lies  under  the  writer’s 
eye  as  he  pens  these  words. 


272 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  AUTHOR  OF  THE  HYMN 

George  Matheson  was  born  in  Glasgow,  March  27, 
1842  ;  the  son  of  a  prosperous  merchant  there.  His  was 
not  therefore  the  heritage  of  poverty  out  of  which  so 
many  eminent  Scottish  clergymen  have  won  their  way. 
There  are,  however,  far  worse  handicaps  than  poverty, 
and  one  of  them  is  blindness.  Even  as  a  child  his  sight 
was  impaired  by  inflammation  back  of  his  eyes.  At  school 
he  could  still  read  by  the  aid  of  powerful  glasses,  but 
from  his  entrance  to  the  University  of  Glasgow  in  1857, 
his  sight  failed  him  altogether,  and  we  have  to  think 
of  a  buoyant  and  eager  boy,  the  best  student  in  his 
school,  with  all  a  scholar’s  instincts  and  ambitions,  fac¬ 
ing  a  life  fettered  if  not  thwarted.  He  entered  at  once 
the  spiritual  struggle  his  situation  made  inevitable,  he 
put  to  Heaven  the  old  and  unanswered  question  of  why  a 
catastrophe  so  undeserved  should  befall  him.  Happily 
he  stood  the  test  of  his  faith  and  won  the  Christian  se¬ 
cret  of  submission  and  something  already  of  the  self¬ 
surrender  of  which  his  beautiful  hymn  was  to  sing. 

Matheson’s  blindness  has  been  regarded  by  some  as 
an  endowment,  a  blessing  in  disguise,  that  made  possible 
all  that  he  became  and  the  real  spiritual  influence  he 
exerted.  Others  regard  it  as  seriously  affecting  his  full 
development,  and  as  the  obstacle  that  prevented  his 
becoming  the  great  Scottish  churchman  of  his  time,  and 
the  spiritual  leader  of  his  generation.  Who  can  say? 
What  we  know  is  that  he  had  a  brave  and  useful  life, 
became  a  successful  preacher  of  a  very  high  order,  and 
by  his  devotional  and  other  books  influenced  for  good  a 
great  number  of  people.  Looking  back  upon  his  career, 


O  LOVE  THAT  WILT  NOT  LET  ME  GO  273 

he  himself  called  it  “  an  obstructed  life,  a  circumscribed 
life,  but  a  life  of  boundless  sanguineness,  a  life  of  quench¬ 
less  hopefulness,  a  life  which  has  beaten  persistently 
against  the  cage  of  circumstance,  and  which  even  at  the 
time  of  abandoned  work  has  said  not  ‘  Good  night,’  but 
‘  Good  morning.’  ” 

Quite  possibly,  if  he  had  had  his  sight,  he  would  have 
followed  his  inclination  to  study  law.  He  would  have 
proved  a  great  advocate  surely,  a  great  lawyer  it  may  be, 
though  not  so  assuredly.  As  things  were  he  entered  the 
ministry  of  the  Church  of  Scotland,  to  which  his  family 
had  adhered  at  the  Disruption,  and  was  licensed  by  the 
Presbytery  of  Glasgow  in  June,  1866. 

His  first  parish  was  Innellan,  then  a  small  place  and 
something  of  a  summer  retreat,  on  the  Firth  of  Clyde. 
There  was  strong  opposition  to  a  blind  minister;  but 
he  soon  won  all  hearts,  proved  a  capable  pastor,  and  re¬ 
mained  there  for  eighteen  years,  with  ever-spreading 
reputation  as  a  preacher  of  very  unusual  power,  even 
for  Scotland,  the  land  of  great  preachers. 

Dr.  Matheson  first  came  before  the  general  public  as 
a  scientific  theologian,  with  his  Aids  to  the  study  of  Ger¬ 
man  Theology  in  1874,  and  three  years  later  with  his 
The  Growth  of  the  Spirit  of  Christianity ,  a  brilliant 
book  with  marked  defects.  Some  of  its  mistakes  were 
pointed  out  by  critics,  and  its  author  was  charged  with 
being  an  inaccurate  student.  One  of  his  friends  has  re¬ 
ferred  to  the  effect  these  criticisms  had  upon  the  author 
himself.  “  When  he  saw  that  for  the  purposes  of  schol¬ 
arship  his  blindness  was  a  fatal  hindrance,  he  withdrew 
from  the  field  —  not  without  pangs,  but  finally.” 
(“Abandoned  work”  already;  and  now  to  “say  Good 
morning.”) 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


274 

He  next  undertook  blithely  the  task  of  a  reconciler 
between  the  old  faith  and  the  new  learning  —  evolution 
and  the  higher  criticism  of  the  Bible.  But  gradually 
his  own  mind  became  tangled  in  the  perplexities  and  con¬ 
tradictions  he  sought  to  solve,  and  he  could  not  see  his 
way.  In  the  end  he  turned  his  back  on  these  problems, 
and  apparently  on  the  new  learning  itself,  and  retired 
within  his  own  soul  to  renew  the  fires  of  faith  and  deepen 
the  inner  life  of  communion  with  God.  (“  Abandoned 
work  ”  again,  and  again  “  Good  morning.”)  His  later 
books  are  expository  and  devotional;  glowing,  mystical 
and  deeply  spiritual,  as  of  a  prophet  seeing  things  in¬ 
visible,  and  trying  to  narrate  his  vision. 

Before  leaving  Innellan  he  had  the  honor,  dear  to  the 
hearts  of  the  clergy  of  the  established  Church,  of  being 
summoned  to  Balmoral  to  preach  before  Her  Majesty, 
Queen  Victoria,  a  Presbyterian  while  residing  in  Scot¬ 
land  and  a  communicant  in  her  parish  church  of  Craigie. 
She  wrote  afterwards  that  she  was  “  immensely  delighted 
with  the  sermon  and  the  prayers,”  and  with  her  usual 
thoughtfulness  she  substituted  for  the  customary  signed 
photograph  a  little  bust  of  herself  that  the  preacher 
could  feel. 

In  the  fulness  of  his  powers  Matheson  accepted  a  call 
to  Edinburgh,  and  in  March,  1886,  was  installed  as  min¬ 
ister  of  St.  Bernard’s  Parish  Church,  with  some  1500 
communicants.  Here  he  repeated  his  earlier  success  on 
a  larger  scale,  and  became  a  shining  light,  seen  of  all 
men,  waited  upon  by  great  congregations,  honored  by 
the  Scottish  universities  and  esteemed  in  all  the  churches. 
We  have  a  description  of  him  in  the  pulpit  of  St.  Ber¬ 
nard’s,  as  observed  by  the  Rev.  Charles  Parkhurst  of 
New  York:  ‘He  enters  the  pulpit  not  larger  than  a 


THE  REV 


GEORGE  MATHESON 


276  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

flour  barrel.  He  has  the  face  and  form  of  General  Grant, 
when  the  hero  of  Vicksburg  was  most  stout,  but  is  taller. 
With  natural  open  eye  you  would  not  have  thought  he 
was  blind.  Now  he  rises,  swaying  a  little  until  he  gets 
his  equilibrium.  Announcing  a  Psalm  for  alternate 
reading,  he  takes  his  verses  without  the  mistake  of  a 
word,  and  throughout  the  whole  service,  calling  for  sev¬ 
eral  hymns  and  Scripture  references  with  chapter  and 
verse,  he  never  made  an  error.  Then  he  prays,  and  such 
a  prayer!  It  seems  profane  to  write  about  it.  Though 
his  sight  is  eclipsed  he  does  see  God,  he  does  see  into  the 
hearts  of  his  people.  For  forty  minutes  he  preached  on 
the  text,  “  Holy  men  of  God  spake  as  they  were  moved 
by  the  Holy  Ghost.”  We  were  instructed,  refreshed, 
inspired.'* 

Dr.  Matheson  continued  at  St.  Bernard’s  for  thirteen 
years,  when  the  burden  became  too  heavy.  His  last 
years  were  spent  in  preparing  more  books  and  in  preach¬ 
ing  at  large.  He  died  during  a  summer  holiday  at  North 
Berwick  on  August  28,  1906.  He  had  never  married, 
and  was  buried  in  his  family’s  vault  at  Glasgow. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  The  hymn,  let  it  be  remembered,  is  autobiograph¬ 
ical  :  the  consecration  of  a  great  soul  rising  above  the 
despondency  caused  by  a  calamity.  If  sung  at  all  by 
the  average  Christian  it  should  be  sung  very  prayerfully. 
To  sing  it  flippantly  would  be  an  act  of  pure  hypocrisy. 
Even  so  its  full  meaning  cannot  be  grasped  without 
study.  It  seems  worth  while,  therefore,  to  print  here  an 
analysis  made  by  the  Rev.  Sydney  Smith  of  Keith  shortly 
after  Dr.  Matheson’s  death :  — 


O  LOVE  THAT  WILT  NOT  LET  ME  GO 


277 

“  The  unceasing  appeal  which  the  love  of  God  makes 
to  the  soul,  the  truth  that  God  loved  us  into  being,  that 
as  we  owe  our  life  to  Him,  so  it  is  only  in  love  of  Him 
that  we  find  rest,  only  in  service  of  Him  that  our  life 
attains  fullness  —  these  are  the  thoughts  with  which 
the  singer  starts  on  his  flight: 

“  O  Love  that  wilt  not  let  me  go, 

I  rest  my  weary  soul  in  Thee; 

I  give  Thee  back  the  life  I  owe, 

That  in  Thine  ocean  depths  its  flow 
May  richer,  fuller  be. 

“  That  whatever  light  we  have  is  but  a  spark  from  the 
central  fire,  that  the  divine  Light  ever  shines  and  never 
fades,  that  the  unsteady  little  lights  by  which  we  grope 
may  sometimes  dim  its  dawning  glory,  that  by  quench¬ 
ing  them  so  as  to  let  the  Eternal  Light  shine,  it  does 
shine  more  and  more  unto  the  perfect  day,  that  in  God’s 
light  we  see  light  —  are  some  of  the  ideas  to  which  the 
poet  next  gives  expression : 

“  O  Light  that  followest  all  my  way, 

I  yield  my  flickering  torch  to  Thee; 

My  heart  restores  its  borrowed  ray, 

That  in  Thy  sunshine’s  blaze  its  day 
May  brighter,  fairer  be. 


“  Then  the  poet,  turning  his  eye  inward,  is  conscious 
of  a  mysterious  joy  mingling  with  and  transfiguring  his 
grief,  a  joy  which,  however  absorbed  he  is  in  sorrow, 
will  force  itself  upon  him  again  and  again,  he  sees  a 
shimmer  of  meaning  and  mercy  in  the  darkness  of  his 
lot,  he  beholds  a  bow  in  the  cloud,  giving  assurance  that 
the  destroying  flood  will  cease. 


278 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


“O  Joy  that  seekest  me  through  pain, 

I  cannot  close  my  heart  to  Thee; 

I  trace  the  rainbow  through  the  rain, 

And  feel  the  promise  is  not  vain 
That  morn  shall  tearless  be. 

“  The  poet  is  convinced  that  it  is  so.  As  in  the  Light 
that  ‘  followeth  all  his  way/  he  sees  his  cross  to  be 
his  crown,  he  must  not  impatiently  ask  deliverance  from 
the  burden,  he  entreats  power  to  make  in  the  spirit  of 
trust  the  sacrifice  to  which  God  plainly  calls  him: 

“  I  lay  in  dust  life’s  glory  dead, 

And  from  the  ground  there  blossoms  red 
Life  that  shall  endless  be.” 

It  was  in  allusion  to  these  last  lines  that  a  group  of 
clergymen,  who  had  sometime  served  as  Dr.  Matheson’s 
assistants,  sent  to  his  funeral  a  wreath  of  red  roses. 

2.  When  Dr.  Matheson  is  made  to  state  that  he  origi¬ 
nally  wrote  “  I  climbed  the  rainbow  in  the  rain,”  we 
have  perhaps  an  illustration  of  how  hard  it  is  for  a  blind 
scholar  to  secure  entire  accuracy.  He  must  have  meant 
“  climb,”  one  would  think.  Shall  we  agree  with  the 
Scottish  Hymnal  Committee  that  “  I  trace  the  rainbow 
through  the  rain  ”  is  the  better  line? 

3.  While  speaking  of  accuracy  it  may  be  as  well  to 
note  that  the  fourth  word  of  the  hymn,  so  often  printed 
“  will,”  is  “  wilt,”  and  that  it  could  not  be  anything  else. 
It  is  only  a  seasoned  poet,  such  as  Dr.  Holmes  was,  who 
would  venture  to  print, 

“  O  Love  Divine,  that  stooped  to  share.” 

A  poet  whose  reputation  was  still  in  the  making  would 
probably  have  heard  and  heeded  the  call  to  write 
“  stoopedest.”  But  what  a  mouthful  it  is ! 


XXIV 


GOD  BE  WITH  YOU  TILL  WE  MEET  AGAIN 

THE  TEXT  OF  THE  HYMN 

1  God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again, 

By  His  counsels  guide,  uphold  you, 

With  His  sheep  securely  fold  you, 

God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again. 

Till  we  meet,  till  we  meet, 

Till  we  meet  at  Jesus’  feet; 

Till  we  meet,  till  we  meet 
God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again. 

2  God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again, 

’Neath  His  wings  protecting  hide  you. 

Daily  manna  still  divide  you, 

God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again. 

Till  we  meet,  etc. 

3  God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again, 

When  life’s  perils  thick  confound  you, 

Put  His  arms  unfailing  round  you, 

God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again. 

Till  we  meet,  etc. 

4  God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again, 

Keep  love’s  banner  floating  o’er  you, 

Smite  death’s  threatening  wave  before  you, 
God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again. 

Till  we  meet,  etc. 

Rev.  Jeremiah  Eames  Rankin,  1880 

279 


280  studies  of  familiar  hymns 

We  have  now  completed  the  studies  of  what  we  may 
call  nineteenth  century  church  hymns,  and  they  have 
shown  a  progressive  movement  to  improve  the  literary 
quality  of  the  hymnody  and  to  make  it  more  “  churchly.” 

But  the  tale  is  not  yet  told.  The  Church  included  a 
goodly  proportion  of  those  plain  people  of  whom  “  God 
made  so  many  ” ;  who  are  loyal,  but  without  special  ad¬ 
diction  to  culture  or  churchliness.  And  among  them 
began  the  movement,  with  which  we  are  all  familiar,  to 
supplement  the  church  hymns  with  popular  religious 
songs,  of  a  lighter  type  of  words  and  music.  From  the 
evangelistic  hymn  book  of  Mr.  Moody’s  campaign,  the 
new  songs  took  the  name  of  “  Gospel  Hymns,”  and  in 
course  of  time  some  of  them  have  become  very  “  Familiar 
Hymns.”  With  a  representative  of  these  our  studies 
may  fitly  close :  most  fitly  perhaps  with  “  God  be  with 
you,”  because  it  is  the  most  familiar  and  because  it  is 
also  a  song  at  parting. 

THE  STORY  OF  THE  HYMN 

The  hymn  was  written  by  a  Congregationalist  clergy¬ 
man,  Dr.  Jeremiah  Earnes  Rankin,  while  a  pastor  in 
Washington,  D.  C.  After  it  became  popular  he  was  often 
asked  about  its  origin.  If  his  correspondents  expected 
to  hear  that  it  came  forth  from  a  fine  frenzy  of  feeling 
or  under  romantic  circumstances,  they  must  have  been 
disappointed  with  his  reply.  At  all  events  we  have  the 
actual  facts  from  the  author’s  own  pen. 

This  is  from  a  letter  to  Mr.  H.  Porter  Smith,  about 
1890 : 

“  God  be  With  You,  like  most  of  my  hymns  and  poems, 
was  the  product  of  a  cool  purpose,  and  not  the  result  of 


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AUTOGRAPH  OF  THE  HYMN 


282  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

any  experience  or  feeling.  The  thought  that  that  was 
the  meaning  of  our  honest  and  hearty  greeting,  ‘  Good 
by  ’  was  the  germ  of  it.  I  tried  to  put  into  a  hymn  that 
thing,  making  it  Christian  instead  of  common.  I  was 
at  the  time  getting  up  a  gospel  hymn  book  for  use  in  my 
church  in  Washington,  at  the  night  service. 

“  Having  written  one  stanza,  I  sent  it  to  the  author  of 
What  a  Friend  We  Have  in  Jesus,  and  also  to  another 
man,  some  of  whose  melodies  had  pleased  me.  This 
last  gentleman,  Mr.  Tomer,  sent  me  back  the  present 
music  of  the  hymn.  It  was  put  into  shape  a  little  — 
arranged,  perhaps  musicians  would  call  it  —  though  very 
little  was  done  to  it,  by  one  of  my  co-editors,  the  accom¬ 
plished  blind  organist,  Dr.  J.  A.  [It  should  be  W.] 
Bischoff,  of  my  church  in  Washington.  I  then  wrote 
the  other  stanzas.” 

“  I  have  been  told,”  Dr.  Rankin  said  elsewhere,  “  that 
it  is  publicly  stated  that  this  hymn  was  written  on  the 
departure  of  a  certain  temperance  evangelist  to  Europe. 
This  is  wholly  a  mistake.  The  above  is  a  complete 
history  of  its  origin.” 

And  this  is  from  an  article  Dr.  Rankin  sent  to  The 
Christian  Endeavor  World,  in  1894: 

“  The  hymn  never  was  so  much  used  by  the  First  Con¬ 
gregational  Church  as  by  all  the  rest  of  the  world.  With 
the  exception  of  the  Sunday  night  service,  it  was  almost 
never  sung.  I  think  the  Methodists  at  Ocean  Grove  first 
began  to  glorify  it.  This  they  carried  to  such  an  extent 
that  on  the  last  day  of  one  of  their  camp  meetings  a 
member  of  my  family  heard  it  sung  five  successive  times, 
as  the  closing  hymn  of  five  different  assemblies  there.” 
He  goes  on  to  speak  of  his  gratification  at  its  adoption 
by  the  Christian  Endeavor  Society. 


JEREMIAH  EAMES  RANKIN 


284 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


THE  AUTHOR  OF  “GOD  BE  WITH  YOU” 

Dr.  Rankin  did  good  service  in  his  day,  and  was  re¬ 
garded  by  his  friends  as  a  man  of  unusual  gifts.  He 
wrote  a  number  of  books  and  became  a  college  president. 
But  to  the  general  public  his  name  survives  simply  as 
associated  with  a  single  hymn. 

The  son  of  a  Congregationalist  clergyman,  he  was 
born  on  January  2,  1828,  in  the  hamlet  of  Thornton, 
that  lies  by  its  little  river  in  the  hill  country  of  New 
Hampshire.  At  twenty  he  was  graduated  by  Middlebury 
College,  in  the  neighbor  state  of  Vermont,  which  after¬ 
wards  gave  him  its  highest  degrees,  and  chose  him  to 
preside  over  its  centennial  as  a  distinguished  son.  Later 
in  life  Dr.  Rankin  became  president  of  the  Howard 
University  in  Washington,  D.  C.,  founded  after  the  Civil 
War  to  help  in  the  higher  education  of  the  Negro.  He 
was  interested  all  his  life  in  the  advancement  of  the 
colored  people,  and  here  he  spent  his  last  years  of  active 
service.  Retiring  in  1902  to  the  home  of  his  daughter 
in  Cleveland,  there  he  died  on  November  28,  1904. 

Dr.  Rankin  had  a  Scotch  pedigree,  a  great  love  of 
Robert  Burns,  a  ready  pen  of  his  own,  and  an  early  ambi¬ 
tion  to  make  his  mark  in  poetry ;  all  of  which  things 
showed  themselves  in  his  first  book,  in  the  Scottish 
dialect,  Auld  Scotch  Mither.  Throughout  life  the  writ¬ 
ing  of  verse  continued  to  be  his  avocation.  But  his  real 
vocation  was  in  preaching  and  pastoral  work.  He  served 
many  Congregational  churches  in  New  England,  New 
York,  and  New  Jersey.  One  can  picture,  above  the  pul¬ 
pit,  his  square  face  topped  with  the  luxuriant  head  of 
dark  brown  hair,  and  the  piercing  eyes  underneath  the 
heavy  brows,  giving  it  such  an  intense  look.  One  can 


GOD  BE  WITH  YOU  TILL  WE  MEET  AGAIN  285 

almost  hear  the  deep  voice  speaking  rapidly  his  char¬ 
acteristic  short,  sharp  sentences  with  all  his  Scottish 
fervor  and  conviction. 

The  pastorate  that  concerns  us  most  was  at  the  First 
Congregational  Church  of  Washington.  It  was  one  of 
those  churches  started  under  the  conviction  that  one’s 
own  denomination  ought  to  have  a  representative  at  the 
nation’s  capital ;  and  General  Oliver  O.  Howard,  of 
Civil  War  fame,  traveled  all  over  the  country  raising 
money  to  build  it.  Dr.  Rankin  came  as  pastor  in  1869. 
His  fervid  preaching  at  once  drew  a  large  congregation, 
and  the  evenings  gave  him  opportunity  to  conduct  those 
informal  evangelistic  services,  for  which,  as  we  have  seen, 
his  hymn  was  written. 


THE  COMPOSER  OF  THE  TUNE 

We  might  indeed  say  that  the  composer  of  the  music 
to  “  God  be  with  you  ”  was  co-author  of  the  hymn 
itself,  for  one  can  hardly  think  of  the  words,  much  less 
sing  them,  apart  from  Mr.  Tomer’s  melody. 

William  Gould  Tomer  was  not  a  trained  musician. 
His  only  education  was  had  at  the  public  school  of  a 
hamlet,  in  Warren  County,  New  Jersey  (now  known  as 
Finesville).  There  he  was  born  on  October  5,  1833,  of 
Methodist  stock,  German  on  his  father’s  side.  And 
there,  at  the  age  of  seventeen,  he  ceased  to  be  a  scholar 
in  the  village  school  by  becoming  its  teacher.  He  was 
a  country  boy  who  loved  music,  who  could  carry  his 
part  in  the  old-time  singing  school  and  lead  the  village 
choir  on  a  Sunday.  He  had  taught  himself  to  play  the 
bass  viol  and  violin,  and  wrote  musical  sketches  that 
revealed  a  distinct  gift  for  melody. 


286  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

The  Civil  War  interrupted  his  teaching.  In  1862  he 
enlisted  as  a  private  and  was  detailed  as  clerk  to  General 
Howard.  On  his  return  home  he  taught  school  again, 
until,  in  1865,  appointed  a  clerk  in  one  of  the  depart¬ 
ments  at  Washington,  where  he  served  for  some  seven¬ 
teen  years. 

There  Dr.  Rankin  met  him,  and  formed  a  pleasant 
impression  of  his  musical  gift.  In  Washington  he  did 
some  newspaper  work,  and  in  later  years  was  editor  of 
one  and  another  local  newspaper  in  New  Jersey  towns. 
At  the  time  of  his  death,  September  26,  1896,  in  Phil- 
lipsburg,  where  his  home  was,  he  was  editing  The  Hunter¬ 
don  Gazette ,  published  in  the  neighboring  High  Bridge, 
New  Jersey.  And  it  is  a  leading  article  in  that  news¬ 
paper,  for  October  1,  1896,  that  has  made  possible  this 
present  sketch  of  Mr.  Tomer’s  life. 

He  is  described  as  a  figure  of  five  feet  ten,  of  bulky 
frame,  with  “  a  smooth  Henry  Ward  Beecher  face,  large 
head,  gray  eyes  and  a  benign  countenance  ” ;  an  attrac¬ 
tive  personality,  a  general  utility  man  with  many  bents 
and  capacities  and  a  liking  to  spread  his  own  sunny  at¬ 
mosphere:  at  his  best  in  his  home,  where  each  child 
could  play  some  musical  instrument.  Very  fitly  the 
choir  of  the  Phillipsburg  Methodist  Church  sang  “  God 
be  with  you  ”  at  his  funeral ;  for  that  is  his  memorial. 

SOME  POINTS  FOR  DISCUSSION 

1.  Dr.  Rankin’s  hymn  does  not  belong  to  literature 
but  to  the  outlying  realm  of  popular  song,  where  the 
standard  is  the  simpler  one  of  popular  effectiveness.  It 
ranges  with  sentimental  songs  (most  effective  songs  are 
sentimental),  boating  songs,  camp-meeting  melodies  and 


GOD  BE  WITH  YOU  TILL  WE  MEET  AGAIN  287 

“  gospel  hymns.”  Dr.  Rankin  regarded  it  as  a  1  gospel 
hymn,’  but  in  structure  and  effect  it  is  more  like  the 
old  Negro  ‘  spirituals  ’  (“  Swing  low,  sweet  chariot,”  for 
instance),  that  take  a  melodious  phrase  for  a  theme, 
repeat  it,  play  around  it,  and  come  back  to  it  with  brief 
intervals. 

As  sung  there  are  thirty-two  lines  in  all.  Of  these 
just  twelve  are  the  first  line  over  and  over  again,  and  in 
twelve  other  lines  “  till  we  meet  ”  is  read  twenty  times 
and  sung  forty  times.  Only  eight  lines  are  left  in  which 
to  add  any  thoughts  to  the  original  theme,  and  most  of 
these  are  turned  from  very  familiar  Scripture  phrases. 
So  commonplace  are  they  indeed  that  one  might  almost 
say  the  hymn  contains  hardly  more  than  the  melodious 
first  line  itself. 

In  song,  as  we  all  know,  the  recurrence  of  the  main 
theme  as  a  refrain  is  an  old  and  effective  device.  But 
a  case  so  extreme  as  this  seems  to  invite  criticism ;  and 
first,  from  the  artistic  point  of  view.  Even  the  simplest 
art  should  “  hold,  as  ’t  were,  the  mirror  up  to  nature,” 
and  in  our  human  intercourse  such  a  prolongation  and 
repetition  of  “  Good  bye  ”  would  be  as  unnatural  as  un¬ 
welcome.  Secondly,  it  invites  criticism  from  a  spiritual 
point  of  view,  for  the  hymn  is  throughout  a  prayer ;  and 
in  prayer  we  are  forbidden  to  employ  “  vain  repetitions.” 
Which  probably  means  that  we  must  not  repeat  phrases 
mechanically  without  attending  to  what  we  say,  or  im¬ 
agine  that  petitions,  if  repeated  many  times,  are  more 
effective  than  if  said  only  once. 

The  repetitions  of  the  present  hymn  have  not  in  actual 
experience  interfered  with  the  powerful  emotional  ap¬ 
peal  it  has  made  to  a  vast  company  of  Christians:  they 
have  probably  consolidated  it  by  diverting  the  singers 


288  STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 

from  the  necessity  of  doing  any  thinking  or  even  much 
remembering.  Wherein  does  the  power  of  that  emo¬ 
tional  appeal  lie? 

First ,  in  the  simple  words  “  Good  bye,”  which  the 
opening  line  draws  out  so  melodiously  and  the  added 
lines  perhaps  amplify.  As  Mark  Rutherford  says  in  his 
novel,  Catharine  Furze,  “  In  all  parting  there  is  some¬ 
thing  infinite.” 

Second,  in  Mr.  Tomer’s  music,  which  has  the  half- 
pathetic  strain  loved  by  young  people  in  their  college 
and  other  songs.  In  its  way  the  music  is  quite  remark¬ 
able  in  suggesting  the  bright  hopes  and  vague  shadows 
that  lurk  around  “  good-bye.”  Whether  into  the  dark 
or  into  the  light,  it’s  “  God  be  with  you  ”  where  we  can¬ 
not  go !  And  so  the  melody  flows  on  and  turns  back ;  now 
loud  and  clear  at  the  doorway  where  we  separate,  now 
lessening  with  the  lengthening  roads  that  bear  us  apart, 
now  as  a  last  refrain,  so  faint,  so  far,  and,  then,  remem¬ 
bered  music. 

2.  Dr.  Rankin  was  somewhat  vehement  in  protesting 
against  any  alteration  of  his  hymn.  One  “  tinker,”  he 
said,  printed  “  Put  His  loving  arms  around  you  ”  in 
place  of  “  Put  His  arms  unfailing  round  you  ” :  “  an  idea 
unpleasant  and  out  of  taste,  besides  being  unscriptural : 
as  in  the  Bible  the  arms  always  signify  strength,  espe¬ 
cially  when  applied  to  Jehovah.”  Is  he  right  as  to  the 
Biblical  usage? 

Another  “  tinker  ”  printed  “  still  provide  you  ”  in 
place  of  “  still  divide  you,”  intended  to  suggest  Christ’s 
breaking  and  distribution  of  bread.  This  tinker,  Dr. 
Rankin  said,  might  have  served  as  a  butler  or  com¬ 
missary. 

3.  When  in  1889  Dr.  Rankin  printed  his  Hymns  pro 


GOD  BE  WITH  YOU  TILL  WE  MEET  AGAIN  289 

Patria,  he  doubled  the  length  of  this,  adding  four  verses. 
Could  there  have  been  a  call  for  forty  additional  repeats 
of  “  Till  we  meet  ”  ?  And  was  there  no  kindly  hand 
raised  to  prevent  the  printing  of  this  final  verse? 

“  God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again, 

Ended  when  for  you  earth’s  story, 

Israel’s  chariot  sweep  to  glory: 

God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again.” 

4.  In  concluding  these  studies  of  hymn  origins,  the 
writer  wonders  how  many  readers  have  come  so  far  with 
him,  and  if  any  has  learned  to  turn  a  more  interested 
eye  on  his  church  hymnal ;  and  especially  if  he  has  yet 
begun  to  notice  the  inconspicuous  note  to  each  hymn 
and  tune  that  discloses  its  authorship  and  date,  and  the 
state  of  the  hymn’s  text.  The  writer  would  like  to  tell 
the  story  of  all  that  was  involved  in  preparing  the  notes 
to  this  hymn  and  tune  as  one  illustration  of  the  pains¬ 
taking  that  goes  into  a  good  hymnal.  For  the  sake  of 
directness  he  will  tell  it  in  the  first  person. 

When  I  wrote  Dr.  Rankin  for  permission  to  use  words 
and  music  in  The  Hymnal  of  1895,  I  asked  for  the  cor¬ 
rect  date  of  each.  He  replied  that  he  could  not  tell 
“  without  great  inconvenience  and  loss  of  time.”  He 
did  not  even  know  Mr.  Tomer’s  full  name  or  address. 
So  both  hymn  and  tune  went  in  without  a  date.  Soon 
after  I  secured  for  the  tune  a  date  I  thought  trustworthy 
(as  it  was)  ;  and  so  in  the  second  edition  it  was  dated 
1880.  In  correcting  the  plates  for  a  fourth  printing 
this  date  was  struck  out  through  some  misunderstanding, 
and  hymn  and  tune  appeared  once  more  without  any 
date.  Then  I  came  upon  a  quotation  from  a  letter  of 
Dr.  Rankin,  saying  that  both  were  written  in  1882.  Sup- 


290 


STUDIES  OF  FAMILIAR  HYMNS 


posing  he  had  looked  up  the  matter  at  last,  that  date 
was  given  to  both  words  and  music  in  the  edition  of 
The  Hymnal  printed  in  1899,  and  was  kept  when  The 
Hymnal  revised  was  published  in  1911,  and  printed  there 
till  now. 

One  day  in  May,  1921,  I  was  looking  over  a  poor  lot 
of  old  ‘  gospel  ’  song  books  in  Highlands’  second-hand 
book  store  on  Arch  Street,  Philadelphia,  and  came  upon 
one  called  Gospel  Bells.  Its  editors  were  named  as 
“  Prof.  J.  W.  Bischoff,  Otis  F.  Presbrey  and  Rev.  J.  E. 
Rankin,  D.D.,”  and  it  was  published  in  Chicago,  1880. 
Here  plainly  was  the  song  book  that  Dr.  Rankin  and  his 
blind  organist  prepared  for  the  evangelistic  services  at 
Washington,  and  here,  surely  enough,  was  “  God  be  with 
you,”  on  page  51,  words  and  music,  just  as  it  is  sung 
now.  Sometimes  these  books  are  dated  ahead,  for 
reasons  publishers  know.  But  this  particular  copy  has 
a  penciled  note  stating  that  it  was  bought  “  Nov.  1880.” 
So  we  have  at  last  the  correct  date  of  the  first  printing 
of  our  hymn  and  tune.  And  the  Hymnal  plates  will 
have  to  be  altered  once  more. 


GENERAL  INDEX 


[ Titles  of  books,  etc.,  in  Italics.] 


Abney,  Sir  Thomas,  30 
Addison,  Joseph,  20 
Advent,  Second,  211,  215,  248 
Aids  to  the  Study  of  German 
Theology,  273 
Ainsworth’s  Psalter,  10 
Alden,  John  and  Priscilla,  10 
Alexander,  Mrs.  Cecil  Frances: — 
her  hymn,  “  There  is  a  green 
hill  far  away,”  220-231 
sketch  of,  226, 
portrait  of,  222 
autograph  verse  of,  225 
Alexander,  Rev.  James  W.,  219 
Alexander,  Archbishop  William, 
226,  227,  229 
Alice  in  W onderland,  226 
All  Hallows,  London  Wall,  263, 
264 

Allen,  Ethan,  76 
Allen,  James,  93,  98,  99,  ioi, 
102,  103 

Amatory  hymns,  40,  98 
American  Colonies: — 

The  Wesleys  in,  36,  120 
Whitefield  in,  49,  81,  82,  120 
Toplady  and,  120 
American  Revolution,  The,  138 
Anglican  Hymnology,  241 
Apostles’  Creed,  The,  224,  258, 
266 


Argyll,  the  Duke  of,  219 
Arminianism,  46,  49,  50,  no, 
in 

Ashworth,  Caleb,  65 
Auld  Scotch  Mither,  284 
Aurelia  (tune),  259 
Autumn  (tune),  n 

Bacon,  Rev.  Leonard  W.,  129 
Baker,  Rev.  Sir  Henry  Williams, 
21,  243 

Balerma  (tune),  21,  179 
Balmoral,  274 
Barnby,  Sir  Joseph,  206 
Bartholomew,  253 
Barton,  William,  18 
Bath,  100 

Beauties  of  Dr.  Watts,  &c.,  159 
Bedford,  Duchess  of,  169 
Benediction  (tune),  254 
Bernard  of  Cluny,  211 
Bible:— 

Genevan,  9 

language  of,  in  hymns,  257, 
266 

“  Bible  only,  The,”  4,  24, 
174 

“  Bible  Songs,”  4 
Bible  Hymn  Book,  The,  215 
Bischoff,  J.  W.,  282,  290 
Blaikie,  Rev.  Wm.  Garden,  208 


291 


292 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Blair,  Robert,  184 
Blair,  Samuel,  87 
Bonar,  Rev.  Horatius: — 

his  hymn,  “  I  heard  the 
voice  of  Jesus  say,”  207- 
219 

his  other  hymns,  212,  213, 
215,  251 
sketch  of,  209 
portrait  of,  208 
autograph  of  his  hymn,  214 
his  popularity,  215 
criticisms  of,  216 
his  place  among  hymn 
writers,  218 

Book  of  Common  Praise,  203 
Book  of  Common  Prayer, 
T  he : — 
of  1549,  5 
of  1552,  5,  8 

its  prose  system  of  Psalm¬ 
ody,  8 

Calvin’s  influence  on,  5 
hymns  bound  up  with,  179 
Borthwick,  Jane,  219 
Bourgeois,  Louis,  4,  6 
Bradbury,  William  B.,  206 
Braddock’s  defeat,  88 
Brandon,  Vt.,  121 
Breviary,  The,  5,  140 
Bridges,  Robert,  152 
Brierley,  J.,  23 
Brighton,  196,  201,  250 
Broad  Church,  196 
Brooks,  Bishop  Phillips,  226 
Brownlie,  Rev.  John,  219 
Bruce,  Michael,  219 
Bryant,  William  Cullen,  152 
Buckingham,  Duchess  of,  94 
Bullinger  (tune),  244 
Bunhill  Fields,  166 
Burder,  George,  158 
Burns,  Rev.  James  Drummond, 
205,  219 


Burns,  Robert,  284 
Burrington  Combe,  113,  114 
Byrom,  John: — 

his  hymn  “  Christians, 
awake !  ”,  56-67 
sketch  of,  57-62 
portrait  of,  59 
autograph  of,  63 
and  the  Wesleys,  57-60 
his  shorthand,  58,  60 
his  epigram,  62 
his  daughter  Dolly,  62,  64 

Caersalem  (tune),  77,  78 
Cairns,  Principal,  212 
Cairo,  271 

Calm  Address  to  the  American 
Colonies,  120 
Calvin,  John: — 
portrait  of,  3 
at  Geneva,  2-5 
inaugurates  singing  of  metri¬ 
cal  Psalms,  4 
provides  the  tunes,  4,  6 
his  Psalm  Book,  4,  6,  7,  8, 
11 

his  prescription  of  “  Bible 
[songs]  only,”  viii,  4,  14, 
20,  83,  178 

his  distrust  of  human  hymns, 

4,  83 

his  influence  on  English 
Reformation,  4,  5,  8 
his  influence  on  Scottish 
Reformation,  17,  175,  178 
Calvinistic  Methodist  Church,  70 
Calvinism: — 

in  English  Reformation,  5 
in  Scottish  Reformation,  17 
of  Francis  Rous,  18 
of  Church  of  England,  hi 
of  Whitefield ;  and  his 
breach  with  the  Wesleys, 
46,  49,  50,  69,  106 


GENERAL  INDEX 


293 


of  the  Evangelicals,  106,  108, 
131,  143,  19s,  248 
of  Lady  Huntingdon,  96, 
106,  131 

of  the  Welsh  Revival,  69,  70 
of  The  Gospel  Magazine, 
1S6 

of  Toplady,  110-112,  156 
of  Olney  Hymns,  13 1,  134, 
144,  149 
of  Bonar,  218 
Cannongate,  212 
Cape  Cod  Folks,  233,  244 
Cataract  of  Lodore,  218 
Catechizing,  132,  253 
Catharine  Furze,  288 
Catholic  Revival,  The,  221,  223, 
224,  235,  236,  246, 

Cennick,  John: — 

his  hymn,  “  Children  of  the 
Heavenly  King,”  45-55, 
184 

his  strange  experience,  46 
his  portrait  and  autograph, 
48 

his  hymns,  50,  233, 
his  relations  with  the  Wes¬ 
leys,  46,  49,  50 

Centennial  of  American  Inde¬ 
pendence,  1 19,  121,  129 
of  “  Rock  of  Ages,”  121 
of  the  Constitution,  122 
“  Centennial  Hymn  ”  (Whit- ' 
tier’s),  128 

Chadwick,  Rev.  John  White,  128 
Chalmers,  Dr.  Thomas,  21 1 
Chalmers’  Memorial,  Edinburgh, 
211 

Charles  I,  17 

Charleston,  Wesley  at,  36 
Charterhouse,  The,  260,  262 
Children’s  Hymns: — 
(otherworldly),  30 
Watts’s,  231 


C.  Wesley’s,  231 
Ann  and  Jane  Taylor’s,  231 
Mrs.  Alexander’s  (churchly), 
224,  226,  230 
Bonar’s,  212,  213 
The  fault  in,  and  the 
remedy,  229-231 
Choir  tunes,  67 

Christian  Endeavor  Society,  282 
Christian  Endeavor  World,  The, 
282 

Christian  Year,  The,  227 
Christian  Psalmist,  The,  189 
Christmas: — 

(two)  Christmas  hymns  as¬ 
sociated  with  the  Wes¬ 
leys,  57 

“  Christmas  Day  for  Dolly,” 
62 

hymns  and  carols,  66 
English  carol  singing,  65 
and  Epiphany,  190 
Church,  The: — 
doctrine  of,  256 
its  fluctuations,  242 
Miss  Elliott’s  conception  of, 
196 

Church  Hymns,  252,  254, 

Church  of  England,  see  England 
Church  of  Scotland,  see  Scotland 
Church  Service  Society,  269, 

“  Churchly  ”  hymns,  223,  230, 
239,  242,  247,  252, 

Civil  War,  English,  17 

American,  125,  126,  129,  286 
Clark,  Rev.  Samuel,  169 
Clarke,  Rev.  Adam,  190 
Colenso  controversy,  257,  258 
Coleshill  (tune),  177 
Collection  of  Hymns  for  the 
people  called  Methodists,  38, 
40 

Colin  and  Phoebe,  58 
Communion,  Holy,  246 


GENERAL  INDEX 


294 

Communion  Hymns,  90,  91,  180, 

215 

Congregationalists: — 
in  England: 

retain  metrical  Psalmody,  24 
decay  of  the  Psalmody,  24, 
26 

introduce  hymns  (Watts), 

27,  36,  158 

stay  apart  from  the  Revival, 
171 

Doddridge  as  their  leader, 
171 

decline  of,  171,  172 
in  America: 

inherit  metrical  Psalmody, 
10 

introduce  Watts’s  “  Psalms 
and  Hymns  ”  at  the  Great 
Awakening,  82 
in  Washington,  285 
Converse,  Charles  C.  (com¬ 
poser  of  “What  a  Friend”), 
282 

Conyers,  Rev.  Richard,  150 
Cooke  and  Denton’s  Church 
Hymnal ,  94,  102,  103 
Coronation  (tune),  160,  166 
Cotterill,  Rev.  Thomas,  66,  118 
Courtship  of  Miles  Standish, 
The,  10 

Cousin,  Anne  Ross,  219 
Cowper,  William: — 

his  hymn,  “  God  moves  in  a 
mysterious  way,”  142-153 
how  he  came  to  Olney,  143 
and  Newton,  134,  143,  146, 
147 

portrait  of,  145 
his  part  in  Olney  Hymns, 
147,  148,  152 

his  insanity,  144,  146,  148, 
149 

his  poems,  149 


Cradlebow,  Lute,  233,  244 
Craigie  Church,  274 
Cranmer,  Thomas,  5 
Crewe  Green,  252 
Crockett,  Samuel  R.,  177 
Cromwell,  Oliver,  13 
Curtis,  George  William,  32 
Cuyler,  Rev.  Theodore  L.,  187, 
212,  224, 

Cymbeline,  118 

Dartmouth,  Lord,  133,  138 
Dartmouth  College,  138 
Davies,  Rev.  Samuel: — 

his  hymn,  “  Lord  I  am 
Thine,”  80-92 ; 
sketch  of*  87-90 
autograph  of,  89 
portrait  of,  85 
the  first  American  Presby¬ 
terian  hymn  writer,  83-87, 
172 

introduces  hymn  singing  in 
Virginia,  84 
his  Sermons,  86,  90 
at  Princeton,  88 
his  allusion  to  Washington, 
88 

Death  in  the  older  Evangelical 
hymnody,  30 

Declaration  of  Independence,  119, 
121 

Dialogue,  Hymns  in,  50,  51,  233 
Dickens,  Charles,  32,  217 
Dictionary  of  Hymnology,  Jul¬ 
ian’s,  161 ;  (quoted),  44,  203 
Didactic  hymns,  265 
Dismissal  (tune),  78 
Disruption  of  Church  of  Scot¬ 
land,  271 

“  Dissenting  interest,”  decline  of, 
171 

Divine  Songs  for  the  use  of 
Children,  231 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Dobell’s  New  Selection  of 
Hymns,  159,  161 
Doddridge,  Rev.  Philip: — 

his  hymn,  “  O  God  of 
Bethel,  by  whose  hand,” 
167-180 
sketch  of,  168 
portrait  of,  170 
his  Rise  and  Progress,  171 
his  Family  Expositor,  171 
his  Hymns,  168,  172,  179 
and  Watts,  27,  168,  171 
and  the  Revival,  171 
and  Whitefield,  171 
and  Lady  Huntingdon,  172 
Dog’s  Monument  The,  in  Lon¬ 
don  and  in  Philadelphia,  263 
Douglass,  Canon,  21 
Drawyer’s  Church,  87 
Duffield,  Rev.  George,  219 
Duffield,  Rev.  Samuel  W.,  241 
Duncan,  Canon,  54,  215 
Duncan,  Rev.  John,  159,  161 
Dundee  (tune),  21,  179 
Dunn,  Rev.  Robinson  P.,  219 
Duquesne,  Fort,  88. 

Dutch  Psalmody  in  England, 
10 

Dykes,  Rev.  John  Bacchus,  76, 
254,  271 

East  Grinstead,  235,  236 
Easter,  102,  165 

Eastern  Church,  hymns  of  the, 
236 

Edinburgh: — 

Dr.  Blaikie  at,  208 
Bonar  at,  211 
Matheson  at,  274 
Edinburgh  Review,  187 
Edward  VI,  5,  8 
Edwards,  Rev.  Jonathan,  88 
Eighteenth  century  hymns,  4°, 
182 


295 

Election,  Doctrine  of,  49,  in 
Ellers  (tune),  254 
Ellerton,  Rev.  John: — 

his  hymn,  “  Saviour  again 
to  Thy  dear  Name  we 
raise,”  245-254 
sketch  of,  247 
portrait  of,  249 
autograph  of,  251 
reference  to,  43 
Eliot,  George,  30 
Elizabeth,  Queen,  24 
Elliott,  Charlotte: — 

her  hymn,  “  Just  as  I  am,” 
194-206,  221 
sketch  of,  196 
portrait  of,  197 
autograph  of,  199 
Elliott,  Rev.  Plenry  V.,  201,  203 
Emerson,  Ralph  Waldo,  151 
England,  Church  of: — 

adopts  Calvin’s  ideals  of 
Psalmody,  4-7 
but  retains  its  prose 
Psalter  also,  8 
continues  Psalm  singing 
through  Elizabeth’s  reign, 
24 

also  after  the  Puritan  Revo¬ 
lution,  17-18,  24 
and  John  Wesley  (he  prints 
its  first  hymn  book)  36- 
38,  105 

and  Lady  Huntingdon  (who 
introduces  hymns)  94- 
97,  131 

and  the  Evangelicals  (their 
hymns  and  hymn  books) 
106,  108,  131,  143,  146, 
195,  248 

it  clings  to  the  metrical 
Psalms,  105,  133 
its  Calvinism  vindicated, 
no,  in 


296 


GENERAL  INDEX 


in  Virginia,  83 
its  parish  system,  250 
and  the  High  Church  Move¬ 
ment: 

the  effect  on  worship,  246 
the  Churchly  hymns,  221- 
223,  230,  239,  242,  247, 
252 

its  Catholic  Revival,  and  the 
Old  Church  hymns,  235- 
240 

English  Hymns  (Duffield),  241 
“  Enthusiasm,”  105,  106 
Epiphany,  190 
Epworth,  34,  36 
Eton  College,  18,  257 
Evangelical  Magazine,  The,  161 
Evangelical  Revival: — 

the  breach  with  Methodism, 

49,  5o,  69,  96 

Whitefield’s  leadership  of, 

50,  52,  69,  70,  71,  96 
Lady  Huntingdon’s  part,  96, 

97, 

its  Calvinism,  46,  49,  50,  96, 
106,  110-112,  131 
its  spiritual  experiences,  46- 
49 

its  hymns,  46 
at  Olney,  133 

the  Evangelical  or  Low 
Church  Party,  106,  108, 
131,  143,  195,  248 
the  Evangelical  Succession, 
195 

in  Wales,  69,  70 
in  America,  81-84 
and  the  Independents,  171 
Evangelistic  hymns,  280 

Faber,  Rev.  Frederick  W.,  135 
Familiarities  in  worship,  40 
Family  Expositor,  The ,  171 
Famous  Hymns  and  their  Au¬ 


thors  (Jones),  62,  64,  65,  202, 
252,  254 

Ferrers,  Earl,  100 
Findlater,  Mrs.,  219 
Finesville,  N.  J.,  285 
Flemish  Psalmody,  10 
Fleshly  images  in  hymns,  40,  98 
Flowers  of  the  Forest  (tune), 
213 

Foreign  Missions,  189-193 
Fourth  of  July,  119,  120,  124 
Frankfort,  Marian  exiles  at,  5,  8 
Fraser,  Bishop  James,  216 
Free  Church  of  Scotland,  210, 
213 

French  (tune),  21,  179 
French  and  Indian  War,  88,  91 
French  Psalmody,  2,  4,  24 
French  Revolution,  186 
Fulneck  School,  184,  186,  187, 
188,  189 

Garrick,  David,  no 
Gates  Ajar,  211 
Geneva: — 

Calvin  at,  2,  4,  5, 

English  exiles  at,  5,  6,  8,  17 
English  church  formed  at,  5 
English  Bible  translated  at,  9 
English  Psalm  Book  begun 
at,  6 

Gentleman’s  Magazine,  The,  74 
Georgia,  the  Wesleys  in,  36 
German  Hymn  (tune),  54 
German  hymns,  4,  36,  223 
Gibbons,  Rev.  Thomas,  80,  86, 
87,  90,  91 

Gladstone,  William  E.,  42,  43 
Glasgow:  Cathedral,  271;  Mathe- 
son  at,  272;  Presbytery  of,  273 
Glassites,  The,  98 
Gloria  in  Excelsis,  71 
Golden  Age,  The,  226 
Golden  Treasury,  The,  54 


GENERAL  INDEX 


297 


Good  bye,  its  meaning,  287,  288 
Good  Friday,  102 
Gospel  Bells,  290 
Gospel  Hymns,  134,  212,  244, 
280,  287 

Gospel  Magazine,  The,  104,  115, 
116,  150,  156,  157,  161,  164, 
165 

Gounod,  Charles  Francois,  206, 
229, 

Gower  John  FL,  (composer  of 
“Reliance”),  118,  231 
Grahame,  Kenneth,  226 
Grant,  Gen.  U.  S.,  276 
Grave ,  The,  184 
Gray,  Bishop,  257,  258 
Great  Awakening,  The,  81,  82 
Great  House  at  Olney,  133,  148, 
152 

Great  Hymns  of  the  Church,  241 
Greatheed,  Rev.  Samuel,  149 
Greek  Church  and  its  hymns, 
238-241 

Green  Sleeves  (tune),  9 
Gregory,  Rev.  A.  E.,  231 
Growth  of  the  Spirit  of  Christi¬ 
anity,  273 

Halleluiah,  71 

Harris,  Howell,  52,  53,  69,  72, 
74 

Harrison,  Rev.  Ralph,  65 
Harvard  Theological  Review,  32 
Hastings,  Lady  Margaret,  97 
Hastings,  Thomas,  118,  219 
Havergal,  Frances  R.,  242,  243 
Havergal,  Rev.  William  H.,  117 
Heaven,  Hymns  of,  30,  31,  32, 
211,  216 

Heber  (tune),  213 
Henley,  William  E.,  61 
High  Bridge,  N.  J.,  286 
High  Church  Movement,  see 
Oxford  Movement 


hymns,  221,  223,  224,  230, 
239,  242,  246,  252,  253 
Holden,  Oliver,  160,  166 
Holmes,  Oliver  Wendell,  117, 
129,  152,  182,  278 
Hondert  Psalmen  Dauids,  10 
Hopkins,  Edward  J.,  254 
Hopper,  Rev.  Edward,  219 
Horder,  Rev.  W.  Garrett,  76,  78 
Horsley  (tune),  231 
Hosannah,  71 

Hosannah  to  the  Son  of  David, 
7i 

Hours  of  Sorrow,  195,  198,  199, 
200,  203 

Howard,  Genl.  Oliver  O.,  285, 
286 

Howard  University,  284 
Humphrey,  J.  D.,  168 
Humphreys,  Cecil  Frances,  see 
Alexander 

Hunterdon  Gazette,  286 
Huntingdon,  Lady: — 

her  college  in  Wales,  68,  71, 
78,  96 

her  chapels,  71,  96,  97 
and  Gibbons,  86 
and  Shirley,  94,  100 
and  Methodism,  94 
and  Whitefield,  71,  96,  106 
her  secession  from  the 
Church  of  England,  97, 

131 

her  “  Connexion,”  96,  9 7 
her  hymn  singing,  96,  97, 
100 

her  hymn  books,  71,  100 
and  Doddridge,  172 
and  Perronet,  165 
Hutchins’  Hymnal,  122 
“  Hymn  of  human  composure, 
The  ”: — 

favored  by  Luther,  2,  4 
distrusted  by  Calvin,  4,  83 


298 


GENERAL  INDEX 


defended  by  Watts,  26,  27 
employed  by  Wesley,  36,  37, 

105 

vindicated  by  the  Evangeli¬ 
cal  Revival,  82,  83 
introduced  into  Church  of 
England  by  “  Evangeli¬ 
cals,”  106,  131,  146 
resisted  by  Presbyterians  in 
America,  82, 

resisted  by  Presbyterians  in 
Scotland,  175,  176 
repudiated  by  some  Presby¬ 
terian  denominations,  20 
Hymn  Books: — • 

Early  American,  Evangelical 
and  Unitarian,  182 
Wesleyan,  38 

first,  of  the  Church  of  Eng¬ 
land,  106 

first,  of  Scotland,  175,  176 
high  church,  239 
Sunday  school,  30 
evangelistic,  280 
as  registering  thermometers, 
242 

Hymnal,  Presbyterian  (of 
1874) : — 

its  use  of  the  new 
“  churchly  ”  hymns,  253 
Key’s  hymn  in,  129 
Hymnal,  The  (of  1895):  — 

the  standard  for  reference  in 
first  series  of  these  Studies, 
viii 

in  the  making,  21,  121,  125, 
149,  271,  289, 
its  texts  of  the  hymns,  10 
its  tunes  10,  125 
its  notes  to  hymns  and 
tunes,  289 

Hymnal  revised,  The: — • 

the  standard  for  reference  in 
this  book,  viii 


in  the  making,  121,  290 
its  texts  of  the  hymns,  10, 
20,  44,  66,  117,  140,  152, 
155,  179,  192,  205,  252, 
258 

its  tunes,  10,  21,  78,  118, 
121,  166,  179,  206,  231, 
243,  254 

Doddridge’s  hymns  in,  179 
Ellerton’s  hymns  in,  253 
Hymnal  of  the  Calvinistic 
Methodist  Church  of  the 

U.  S.  A.,  77 

Hymn  Lover,  The,  76 
Hymn  tinkering,  40,  178,  288 
Hymns: — ■ 

as  our  response  to  Scripture, 

27 

used  to  enforce  the  Sermon, 
84,  172 

of  the  18th  century,  46,  182 
Dr.  Holmes  on,  182 
the  memorizing  of,  54,  231 
Hymns: — 

amatory,  40 

Centennial,  119,  121,  128 
Children’s,  see  Children’s 
of  Christian  experience,  46 
Churchly,  223,  230,  239,  242, 
247,  252 

Christmas,  see  Christmas 
Communion,  90,  91,  180,  215 
in  dialogue,  50,  51,  233 
didactic,  265 
Easter,  165 

Evangelical,  27,  82,  106,  175, 
195,  204,  218 
evangelistic,  280 
Fourth  of  July,  119,  122, 
129 

German,  4,  36,  223 
Good  Friday,  102 
“  Gospel,”  134,  212,  244,  280, 
287 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Greek,  238-241 
of  heaven,  30-32,  211,  216 
high  church,  221,  223,  224, 
230,  239,  242,  246,  252, 
2  S3 

“  I  and  we,”  103,  247 
Latin,  140,  238 
Missionary,  192 
Moravian,  36,  40,  50,  97, 
98,  184 

otherworldly,  30,  211,  216 
patriotic,  129 
polemic,  112,  258 
Presbyterian,  179,  218-219 
Welsh,  69-75 

Hymns  ancient  and  modern,  21, 
229,  239,  254,  269 

its  “  Appendix  ”  of  1868,  240, 
243,  245,  252,  253,  254,  259 
Hymns  and  Sacred  Poems  (the 
Wesleys’),  34,  39.  57,  60 
Hymns  and  Spiritual  Songs 
(Watts),  22,  23,  27,  36 
Hymns  for  Children  (C.  Wes¬ 
ley),  230 

Hymns  for  infant  minds,  230 
Hymns  for  little  Children,  220, 
224,  227,  229,  230 
Hymns  of  the  Eastern  Church 
translated,  233,  238,  240, 

241 

Hymns  of  Faith  and  Hope,  207, 
215,  218 

Hymns  of  the  Nativity,  215 
Hymns  on  the  Lord’s  Supper, 
US,  ii7 

Hymns  original  and  translated 
(Ellerton),  252 
Hymns  pro  P atria,  288,  289 
Hymns  that  have  helped,  177 

“  I  and  we  ”  hymns,  103,  247 
Independents: — 

retain  metrical  Psalmody,  24 


299 

decay  of  their  Psalmody,  24, 
26 

introduce  Watts’s  “  Psalms 
and  Hymns,”  27,  36,  158 
oppose  the  Great  Revival, 
171 

decline  of,  171,  172 
Ingham,  Rev.  Benjamin,  97 
Inghamite  Hymnody,  97,  98 
Innellan,  269,  270,  273 
Invalid’s  Hymn  Book,  The,  195, 
198,  200,  203 

Ireland:  Church  of,  221;  Mrs. 

Alexander  in,  227 
Irish  Presbyterians,  228 
Irving,  Rev.  Edward,  247,  248 

Jehovah,  75,  76 
Jennings,  John,  169 
Johnson,  Dr.  Samuel,  106,  120 
Jones,  Francis  Arthur,  62,  64, 
65,  202,  252,  254 
Jones,  James  Edmund  (com¬ 
poser  of  “Walden”),  21,  203 
Jonson,  Ben,  151 
Journal  of  The  Presbyterian  His¬ 
torical  Society,  ion 
Jowett,  Rev.  Benjamin,  151 
Julian,  Rev.  John,  44,  161,  203 
Just  as  I  am  (tune),  206 

Keble,  Rev.  John,  221,  227 
Keeler,  Grandma,  233 
Kelso,  209,  210,  213,  215 
Kernahan,  Coulston,  264,  265, 
266 

Kethe,  Rev.  William: — 

his  Psalm,  “  All  people  that 
on  earth  do  dwell,”  1-11 
sketch  of,  8 
Key,  Francis  S.,  129 
Kibworth,  169 
Kiernan,  Miss,  198 
Kilmarnock  (tune),  177 


300 


GENERAL  INDEX 


King,  James,  241 
King’s  Chapel,  182 
Kipling,  Rudyard,  126,  128,  151 
Knox,  John,  5,  17 

Latin  hymns,  140,  238 
Lawrence,  Lord,  177 
Leith,  212,  213,  251 
Lewis,  Rev.  H.  Elvet,  75 
Lining  the  Psalm,  26 
Lisbon,  172 

Liverpool:  Newton  at,  137; 

Montgomery  at,  189 
Livingstone,  David,  177 
Lock  Hospital,  106 
Log  College  (tune),  125 
Logan,  Rev.  John,  168,  178, 

179 

London: —  . 

The  Moravians  in,  37,  40 
Cennick  at,  47 
Toplady  at,  no 
Newton  at,  138 
Doddridge  at,  168 
Evangelicals,  248 
Stone  at,  138 
East  End,  262,  263 
“  City,”  263,  264 
Irving  at,  247,  248 
Londonderry,  228 
Long  Metre,  6 

Longfellow,  Henry  W.,  10,  23, 

151 

Lowell,  James  Russell,  152 
Low  Church  Party,  106,  108, 
131,  143,  195,  248 
Luther  and  his  hymns,  2,  5,  75, 
223 

Lux  Benigna  (tune),  76,  271 
Lyra  Fidelium,  256,  258,  266 

Macaulay,  Lord,  187 
Macbeth,  205 


Mcllvaine,  Bishop  Charles  P., 
204 

Maclaren,  Ian,  14 
McLean,  Sally  Pratt,  233 
MacLeod,  Rev.  Norman,  219 
Madan,  Rev.  Martin,  106,  146 
Makemie,  Rev.  Francis,  88,  90 
Malan,  Rev.  Caesar,  196,  200, 
201 

Mar  Saba,  241 
March,  Rev.  Daniel,  219 
Market  Harborough,  169 
Marlowe,  Christopher,  141 
Marot,  Clement,  4 
Mary,  Queen,  5,  6,  8,  17 
Mason,  Lowell,  78,  206 
Matheson,  Rev.  George: — 

his  hymn,  “  O  Love  that 
wilt  not  let  me  go,”  268- 
278 

portrait  of,  275 
sketch  of,  272 

Maurice,  Rev.  Frederick  D.,  248 
Mayor,  J.  E.  B.,  152 
Merry  Wives  of  Windsor,  9 
Meditation  (tune),  231 
Medley,  Rev.  Samuel,  161 
Memorizing  of  hymns,  54,  231 
Mendelssohn  Collection,  206 
Methodist: — 

Movement,  34,  37,  38 
Societies,  38 
hymns,  37,  38,  39 
hymn  books,  36,  38,  39 
Hymnal,  79 

as  a  nickname  for  Evangeli¬ 
cals,  106,  133 

Lady  Huntingdon  and 
Methodism,  94 
Middlebury  College,  284 
Miles  Lane  (tune),  156,  157, 
160,  166 

Millenium,  211,  248 
Milton,  John,  151 


GENERAL  INDEX 


301 


Missal,  The,  5 

Missionary  hymns,  190,  192,  193 
Mitre,  The,  164 

Mob  interference  with  The  Great 
Revival,  52,  53,  74 
Mob  interference  with  the 
Catholic  Revival,  236 
Monastic  hymns,  211 
Monk,  Bishop,  235 
Monk,  William  Henry,  244,  269 
Montague,  Lady  Mary,  97 
Montgomery,  James: — 

his  hymn,  “  Hail  to  the 
Lord’s  Anointed,”  181-193 
sketch  of,  184 
portrait  of,  185 
birthplace  of,  183 
autograph  of,  191 
as  poet  and  hymn  writer, 

188 

as  hymn  book  editor,  66,  67 
Montgomery,  Robert,  187 
Moody  and  Sankey  Gospel 
Hymns,  134,  212,  244,  280 
Moravians: — 

and  the  Wesleys,  36,  37,  4°> 

51 

their  hymns,  36,  40,  50,  97, 
98,  184 

and  Cennick,  46,  51 

and  Ingham,  97 

and  Montgomery,  183,  184, 

189 

Morison,  Rev.  John,  219 
Morning  and  Evening  Hymns 
for  a  week,  200,  202,  204 
Morris,  James,  no 
Morris,  Samuel,  84 
Morrison,  Rev.  John,  241 
Moule,  Bishop  Handley  C.  G., 
201,  202 

Muhlenberg,  Rev.  William  A.,  30 
Mure,  Sir  William,  12 
Murray,  Rev.  John,  219 


National  Hymn  (tune),  121,  122, 
124,  125,  128 

Neale,  Rev.  John  Mason: — 

his  hymn,  “  Art  thou 

weary,  art  thou  languid,” 
232-244 
sketch  of,  235 
portrait  of,  237 
autograph  of,  239 
his  work  on  Latin  hymns, 
236 

his  work  on  Greek  hymns, 
238,  252 

his  place  in  Hymnody, 

242 

Negro,  The:  his  education,  284; 

his  “  spirituals,”  287 
New  Hymnal,  The,  254 
New  Lights,  84 
New  side  Presbyterians,  84 
New  York:  Trinity  Church, 
122;  St.  Thomas’,  124,  125 
New  York  Evangelist,  224 
Newburyport: — 

Geo.  Whitefield  at,  81 
Old  South  Presbyterian 
Church,  81 

Whitefield’s  Monument,  81, 
92 

“  Newly  Awakened  in  Hanover 
County,”  84 

Newman,  Cardinal,  76,  221,  226 
Newton,  Rev.  John: — 

his  hymn,  “  How  sweet  the 
Name  of  Jesus  sounds,” 
130-141 

his  career,  135 
portrait  of,  132 
autograph  of,  138 
his  Olney  Hymns,  130,  131, 

134,  142,  143,  147,  150 
his  Authentic  Narrative, 

135,  139 

Twenty-six  Letters,  142,  150 


302 


GENERAL  INDEX 


his  friendship  with  Cowper, 
143,  146,  147,  148,  149, 
152 

Nicoll,  Rev.  Sir  Wm.  Robertson, 
238 

No-Popery  movement,  235 

Occasional  verses,  moral  and 
sacred,  155,  157,  i59>  161,  162, 
163 

Ocean  Grove,  Methodists  at,  282 
Oglethorpe,  Governor,  36 
Old  Hundred,  2,  4,  6,  7,  9,  10, 
11 

Oliphant  (tune),  78 
Olney,  131,  132,  138,  140,  143, 
147 

Olney  Hymns,  130,  131,  134,  147, 
150,  152 

Olver,  George,  233,  244 
Orange  Street  Chapel,  108,  no, 
112 

Ordinal,  Tallis’,  177,  179 
Orton,  Job,  168,  172 
Otherworldliness,  30,  211,  216 
Oxford  Movement: — 

its  beginning  at  Oxford, 
221,  235 

at  Cambridge,  235 
its  spread,  235,  247 
its  characteristic,  221 
its  hymnody,  221-223,  230, 
239,  242,  247,  252 
its  extreme  development, 
235,  236,  246 

and  church  worship,  223, 
246,  247 

outside  the  Church  of  Eng¬ 
land,  257 
in  Scotland,  269 
Oxford,  University  of,  221 

Palgrave,  Francis  T.,  54 
Parish  System,  the  English,  250 


Parker,  Horatio,  122 
Parkhurst,  Rev.  Charles,  274 
Parting,  Mark  Rutherford  on, 
288 

Pax  Dei  (tune),  254 
Peace,  Dr.  Albert  L.,  271 
Pelican  Island,  188 
Perfectionism,  116,  126 
Perronet,  Rev.  Edward: — 

his  hymn,  “  All  hail  the 
power  of  Jesus’  Name,” 
154-166 
sketch  of,  164 
his  Occasional  Verses,  155, 
157,  159,  161,  162,  163 
his  Mitre,  164 
and  Wesley,  164 
and  Lady  Huntingdon,  165 
Perronet,  Rev.  Vincent,  and 
family,  163,  164 
Phelps,  Elizabeth  S.,  211 
Philadelphia,  The  dog’s  grave  at 
the  Lawrence  Pepper  house, 
1219  Walnut  St.,  263 
Highlands’  Book  Store,  290 
Phillipsburg,  286 
Pilgrim  Fathers,  10,  129 
Plagiarism,  103 
Pleyel,  Ignaz  Joseph,  54 
Poetry  and  hymns,  152,  267 
Poets  as  hymn  writers,  151 
Poet’s  Portfolio,  188 
Pope,  Alexander,  141 
Prayer  Book,  see  Book  of  Com¬ 
mon  Prayer 
Predestination,  49,  111 
Premillenarianism,  21 1,  248 
Presbrey,  Otis  F.,  290 
Presbyterian  Church: — 
in  America: — 

inherits  the  ordinance  of 
Psalm  Singing,  20,  82 
Whitefield’s  influence  on, 
81,  82,  84 


GENERAL  INDEX 


splits  at  “  The  Great  Awak¬ 
ening,”  81,  82 
begins  to  sing  hymns,  81-84 
its  “  Psalmody  Contro¬ 
versy,”  82 

“  New  side  Presbyterians,”  84 
its  first  hymn  writer 

(Davies),  83-92 
its  other  hymn  writers, 

219 

“  Old  South  Church  ”  (New- 
buryport),  81,  82 
“  Old  Drawyer’s  ”  (Dela¬ 
ware),  87 

Easter  and  Good  Friday  in, 
102 

its  hymn  books: — 

Psalms  and  Hymns 

(1830),  87,  161;  Presby¬ 
terian  Hymnal  (1874), 

129,  253;  The  Hymnal 
(1895)  ;  see  Hymnal; 

The  Hymnal  revised 
(1911);  see  Hymnal  re¬ 
vised 
in  Scotland: 
see  Scotland,  Church  of 
Free  Church  of 
in  Ireland,  221 

Presbyterian  Historical  Society, 
ion. 

Presbytery  of  Newcastle,  84 
“  Presidents’  Row  ”  at  Prince¬ 
ton,  88 

Princeton  College  and  Davies,  86, 
88 

Prison  Amusements,  186 
Pro  Patria  (Parker’s),  122 
Protestant  Episcopal  Church: — 
its  Hymnal  Commission’s 
Report,  119,  122 
its  Hymnal  of  1892,  121 
Tucker’s  setting  of,  121, 
122 


303 

Hutchin’s  setting  of, 
122 

its  New  Hymnal  (1916), 
254 

Trinity  Church,  N.  Y.,  122 
St.  Thomas’  Church,  N.  Y., 
122 

Psalm  (metrical)  Singing  as  a 
divine  ordinance: — 

set  up  by  Calvin,  2,  4,  24 
adopted  by  English  exiles 
at  Geneva,  4-6 
in  French  Reformation,  2- 
5;  24 

in  English  Reformation,  5- 
8,  9,  24 

in  Scottish  Reformation,  17, 
24,  171 

in  Dutch  and  Flemish  Ref¬ 
ormations,  10 
in  Wales,  70 

in  American  Colonies,  20,  82 
falls  into  decay,  24,  25,  36, 

105 

challenged  by  (1)  Watts, 
24-27,  105 

(2)  The  Methodist  Revi¬ 
val,  36,  105 

(3)  The  Evangelical  Re¬ 
vival,  70,  96,  105-109, 
i3D  133 

(4)  The  Great  Awaken¬ 
ing,.  82,  83 

(5)  In  Scotland,  175,  176 
lingers  in  Church  of  Eng¬ 
land,  105 

maintained  by  some  Pres¬ 
byterians,  20 

referred  to  by  Longfellow, 
10 

by  Shakespeare,  9,  10 
Psalm  Books  (Psalters) : — 
of  Calvin,  4,  6,  7,  8,  11 
of  English  exiles,  6,  9,  17 


304 


GENERAL  INDEX 


of  Church  of  England 

(“  Sternhold  and  Hop¬ 

kins,”),  i,  6,  8,  9,  io,  24 
of  Church  of  Scotland 

(1564),  10,  17 
(1650  “Rous”),  13,  14, 
15,  18,  20,  82,  175 
of  the  Pilgrim  Fathers 

(Ainsworth’s),  10 
of  American  Presbyterian¬ 
ism,  20,  82 

of  Watts  ( Psalms  of  David 
imitated ),  26,  36,  65 
of  Montgomery  ( Songs  of 
Zion),  182,  189,  192 
of  The  Book  of  Common 
Prayer  (in  prose),  8 
of  William  Barton,  18 
Psalm  tunes,  4,  6,  n,  67 
“  Psalmody  Controversy  ”  in 
American  Presbyterian  Church, 
82 

in  Scotland,  175,  176 
Psalmody  Convention,  20 
Psalms: — 

23rd,  12-21,  76 
24th,  233 
50th,  65 
72nd,  182-193 
100th,  i-ii,  13 
134th,  4,  6,  7 

Psalms  and  Hymns  (1830),  87, 
161 

Psalms  of  David  imitated,  The 
(Watts),  26,  36,  65 
Psalms  of  David  in  meeter, 
(1650),  13,  14,  is  (title  page), 
17-20,  17s,  214 
Puritans,  5,  1 7,  18 
“  Puseyite  Errors,”  221 

Quakers,  24 

Quarterly  Journal  of  Prophecy, 
211 


Rankin,  Rev.  Jeremiah  Eames: — 
His  hymn,  “  God  be  with 
you,”  279-290 
sketch  of,  280 
portrait  of,  283 
autograph  of,  281 
Readings  to  the  Aged,  238 
Recessional,  Kipling’s,  126,  128 
Record,  The,  201 
Regent  Square  Church,  247 
Redhead  No.  76  (tune), 
118 

Reliance  (tune),  118 
Revival  of  the  18th  century: — 
Methodist,  see  Methodist 
Evangelical,  see  Evangeli¬ 
cal 

Great  Awakening,  81,  82 
its  hymnody,  46,  182 
Revival  hymn  books,  134 
Revolution: — 

American,  120,  138 
English,  17,  18,  24 
French,  186 

Rippon,  Rev.  John,  86,  87,  92, 

i55>  158,  iS9 

Rise  and  Progress  of  Religion  in 
the  Soul,  1 71 

Roberts,  Rev.  Daniel  C.: — 

his  hymn,  “  God  of  our 
fathers,”  1 19-129 
sketch  of,  125 
portrait  of,  127 
autograph  of,  123 
Robinson,  One-eyed,  83 
Roman  Catholic  Church,  221, 
236,  238 

Rous,  Francis,  12,  18;  portrait 
of,  19 

Rous’s  Version: — 

its  adoption,  13,  18,  175 
its  popularity,  13,  14,  214 
title  page  of,  15 
in  America,  20,  82 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Russian  Hymn  (tune),  122 
Rutherford,  Mark,  288 

Sacred  Hymns  for  the  Children 
of  God ,  46,  49-51,  233 
Sacred  Hymns  for  the  use  of 
Religious  Societies,  50,  52 
Sackville  College,  235,  236 
Saint  Agnes  (tune),  252 

Alban’s;  Cowper  at,  144, 
146;  Doddridge  at,  169; 
Cathedral,  250 
Bartholomew,  253 
Bernard’s,  Edinburgh,  274, 
276 

John’s,  Leith,  212 
Laurence’s,  Reading,  47,  49 
Margaret  (tune),  271 
Margaret,  Sisterhood  of, 
235,  236 

Mary  Woolnoth,  138,  139, 
140 

Mary’s  Hall,  Brighton,  201, 
202,  203 

Michael  (tune),  n 
Paul  (tune),  177,  179 
Paul’s,  Concord,  125 
Paul’s,  Haggerston,  262,  263 
Stephen  the  Sabaite,  240, 
241 

Thomas’,  New  York,  122, 
124 

Sancho’s  grave,  263 
Sankey,  Ira  D.,  134,  212,  244, 
280 

Satan,  187 

Satchell,  Captain,  233,  244 
Savannah,  Wesley  at,  36,  106 
Scotland:  Church  of: — 

adopts  Calvin’s  ideals  of 
Psalmody,  17,  174 
its  Reformation  Psalm  Book, 
10,  17 

in  the  Civil  War,  17 


305 

at  Westminster  Assembly, 
17,  18,  174 

its  new  Psalm  Book  (Rous), 
13,  18,  174 

its  people’s  devotion  to  the 
Psalms,  13,  14-17,  168 
proposal  to  “  enlarge  the 
Psalmody,”  174 
the  Psalmody  Controversy, 
i74,  176 

its  first  hymns  (Para¬ 
phrases),  168,  174-178 
its  disruption,  209-210 
its  new  Hymnody,  269 
its  Scottish  Hymnal,  268- 
278 

Free  Church  of,  210 

continues  the  old  Psalm¬ 
ody,  213 

Hymn  writers  of,  8,  215,  219 
Oxford  Movement  in,  269 
Scott,  Sir  Walter,  151 
Scottish  Hymnal,  The,  268,  269, 
270,  271,  278 
Second  Advent,  21 1,  215 
Select  Hymns  and  Anthems,  158 
Shakespeare,  9,  10,  118,  141,  205 
Sheffield,  186,  187 
Sheffield  Register,  186 
Shirley,  Hon.  and  Rev. 
Walter: — 

his  hymn,  “  Sweet  the  mo¬ 
ments,  rich  in  blessing,” 
93-103 

sketch  of,  100 
portrait  of,  95 

Shrubsole,  William,  157,  163, 

164,  166 

Singer,  Elizabeth,  28 
Sisterhood  of  S.  Margaret,  235, 
236 

Sloan,  Rev.  J.  M.,  212 
Smith,  H.  Porter,  280 
Smith,  Rev.  J.  Ritchie,  112 


GENERAL  INDEX 


306 

Smith,  Rev.  Sydney,  276 
Societies,  37,  50 

Solemn  League  and  Covenant,  17 
Song  of  the  New  Creation ,  215 
Songs  of  Zion,  182,  189,  192 
Southampton,  23,  28 
Spectator,  The,  20,  58 
Spiritual  Songs  for  social  wor¬ 
ship,  1 18 
Spirituals,  287 
Stead,  W.  T.,  177 
Stephanos  (tune),  243 
Sternhold  and  Hopkins,  8 
Stevens,  Bishop  Wm.  Bacon,  204 
Stockport  (tune),  64,  65,  66,  67 
Stone,  Rev.  Samuel  John: — 
his  hymn,  “  The  Church’s 
one  Foundation,”  255-267 
sketch  of,  260 
portrait  of,  261 
autograph  of,  259 
his  hymns  and  poems,  266 
his  dog’s  grave,  263 
Strasburg,  4 

“  Subject-matter  of  Praise,”  20, 
178 

Sunday  school  hymns:  see 
Children’s 
Synge,  Mrs.,  202 

Tam  o’  Shanter,  124 
Tallis  (tune),  179 
Tallis’  Canon  (tune),  179 
Taxation  no  Tyranny,  120 
Taylor,  Ann  and  Jane,  230 
Tennent,  Rev.  Gilbert,  88,  90 
Tennyson,  Lord,  24,  151,  212, 
270 

Thackeray,  Wm.  M.,  217,  262 
Theobalds,  30,  32 
Thorne,  Edward  H.,  252 
Thoughts  in  verse  on  Sacred 
Subjects,  200 
Ticonderoga,  76 


Tinkering  of  hymns,  40,  178,  288 
Tomer,  William  G.,  282,  285, 
286,  288 

Toplady,  Rev.  Augustus  M.: — 
on  the  “  God  of  elegance,” 
S3 

his  hymn,  “  Rock  of  Ages,” 
104-118 

his  relation  to  Methodism, 
105 

his  Church  of  England 
hymn  book,  71,  108 
sketch  of,  108 
portrait  of,  109 
autograph  of,  107 
his  controversy  with  Wes¬ 
ley,  hi,  112,  116,  120 
and  the  American  colonies, 
120 

Toplady  (tune),  118 
Torquay,  250 

Translations  and  Paraphrases  of 
Scripture : — 

of  1745,  175,  178 
of  1781,  176,  178,  179, 

(title  page),  175,  213 
Treasury  of  sacred  Song,  54 
Trevecca,  68,  71,  78,  96 
Trevelyan,  Sir  Geo.  Otto,  138 
Trinity  Church,  New  York,  122 
“  Troubles  at  Frankfort,  The,” 
Tucker’s  Hymnal,  121,  122 
Tunes: — 

Genevan,  4,  11 
old  Psalm  tunes,  67 
florid,  67 

parlor  music  school,  124 
four-part-song  style,  206 
Anglican,  124 

the  two  types:  choir  and 
congregational,  67 
Bradbury’s,  206 
Tunes  referred  to: — 

Aurelia,  259 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Autumn,  n 
Balerma,  12 1,  179 
Benediction,  254 
Bullinger,  244 
Caersalem,  77,  78 
Coleshill,  177 
Coronation,  160,  166 
Dismissal,  78 
Dundee,  21,  179 
Ellers,  254 

Flowers  of  the  Forest,  The, 
213 

French,  21,  179 
German  Hymn,  54 
God  be  with  you,  285 
Green  Sleeves,  9 
Heber,  213 
Horsley,  231 

Just  As  I  Am  (Barnby),  206 
Kilmarnock,  177 
Log  College,  125 
Lux  Benigna,  76,  271 
Meditation,  231 
Miles  Lane,  156,  157,  160, 
166 

National  Hymn,  121,  122, 
124,  125,  128 

Old  Hundred,  2,  4,  6,  7,  9, 
10,  11 

Oliphant,  78 

Ordinal  (Tallis),  177,  179 
Pax  Dei,  254 

Pro  Patria  (Parker),  122 
Redhead  No.  76,  118 
Reliance,  118 
Russian  Hymn,  122 
St.  Agnes,  252 
St.  Margaret,  271 
St.  Michael,  11 
St.  Paul,  177,  179 
Stephanos,  243 
Stockport,  64,  65,  66,  67 
Tallis,  177,  179 
Tallis’  ordinal,  177,  179 


307 

There  is  a  Green  Hill 
(Gounod),  231 
Toplady,  118 
Walden,  21 
Walworth,  65 

What  a  Friend  we  have  in 
Jesus,  284 
Woodworth,  206 
Twenty -six  letters,  142,  150 
“  Tye  thy  mare,  Tom  boye,”  9 

Union  Harmony,  160 
Unitarian  hymn  books,  182 
United  Presbyterian  Church,  20 
Unwin,  Rev.  Morley,  146 

Verses  for  Holy  Seasons,  227 
Victoria,  Queen,  262,  274 
Viner,  Wm.  L.,  78 
Virginia,  in  18th  century,  83 ; 
Church  of  England  in,  83  ; 
Davies  in,  80;  Whitefield  in, 
83 

Wainwright,  John,  64,  65,  66,  67 
Walden  (tune),  21 
Wales: — 

and  the  Great  Revival,  69- 
7o,  74 

Wesley  in,  69,  75 
Whitefield  in,  69,  70 
its  Calvinistic  Methodist 
Church,  70 

Lady  Huntingdon’s  College 
in,  68,  71,  78,  96 
its  hymns,  70,  73,  75 
Wall  and  the  Gates,  The,  112 
Walnut  Street  (1219),  Philadel¬ 
phia  (The  Lawrence  Pepper 
house),  263 
Walpole,  Horace,  96 
Walworth  (tune),  65 
Wanderer  in  Switzerland,  The, 
188 


GENERAL  INDEX 


308 

War  Etchings,  126 
Warren,  George  William,  121, 
124 

Washington,  D.  C.,  280,  282, 
284,  285 

Washington,  George,  88 
Watts,  Rev.  Isaac: — 

his  hymn,  “  There  is  a  land 
of  pure  delight,”  22-32 
sketch  of,  23,  28 
portrait  of,  29 
his  Hymns  and  Spiritual 
Songs,  22,  23,  25,  27,  36, 
242 

his  “  Renovation  of  [Inde¬ 
pendent]  Psalmody,”  24, 
26,  27,  30 

his  Psalms  of  David  im¬ 
itated,  26,  36,  65 
popularity  of  his  hymns, 
27 

his  “  Psalms  and  Hymns  ” 
in  The  Great  Awakening, 
82 

in  Virginia,  84 
in  Scotland,  175 
his  hymns  the  model  of 
hymn  writing,  84,  133, 

168 

and  Doddridge  (“  The 
School  of  Watts”),  27, 
168,  171 

his  hostility  to  the  Revival, 
171 

“Watts’s  whims,”  27 
Beauties  of  Dr.  Watts,  &c., 
193 

his  hymns  for  children,  230 
his  missionary  “  Psalm,” 
193 

“  We  and  I  ”  hymns,  103,  247 
Welsh  Revival.  See  Wales 
Wesley,  Rev.  Charles: — 

as  poet  laureate  of  the 


Methodist  movement,  34, 
37 

the  hymn,  “  Jesus,  Lover  of 
my  soul,”  33-44 
his  probable  authorship  of 
it,  38-41 
sketch  of,  34-38 
portrait  of,  35 
his  attitude  toward  Method¬ 
ism,  38 

his  seven  thousand  hymns, 
37 

his  children’s  hymns,  230 
Wesley,  Rev.  John: — 

as  leader  of  the  Methodist 
movement,  34,  37,  38 
sketch  of,  34-38 
his  American  mission,  36, 
120 

inaugurates  hymn  singing  at 
Savannah,  36 
his  first  hymn  book,  36 
and  the  Moravians,  36,  37, 
40,  Si 

his  “  Societies,”  37 
his  Arminianism,  46,  49,  50, 
no,  in 

his  breach  with  Whitefield, 
49,  50,  69,  96 

his  controversy  with  Top- 
lady,  in,  112,  116,  120 
his  Perfectionism,  116,  126 
in  Wales,  69,  75 
his  “Journal,”  60 
his  Calm  Address  to  the 
American  Colonies,  120 
his  Colin,  of  Hymns  for  .  .  . 

Methodists,  38,  40 
his  criticisms  of  Charles’s 
hymns,  40,  42 

his  dislike  of  amatory 
hymns,  40,  98 
and  Cennick,  46,  49,  50 
and  Watts,  36,  171 


GENERAL  INDEX 


Wesleys,  the  (John  and 
Charles: — 

their  joint  Hymns  and 
Sacred  Poems,  34,  39,  57, 
60 

their  joint  Hymns  on  the 
Lord’s  Supper,  115,  117 
and  Byrom,  57,  58,  60,  61 
their  extension  of  hymn 
singing,  37,  105 
and  Perronet,  164 
Wesley,  Rev.  Samuel,  34,  36 
Wesley,  Susannah,  34 
Wesleyan  Methodist  Hymn 

Book,  39 

Westminster  Abbey,  177,  179 
Westminster  Assembly,  17,  18 
Westminster  Catechism,  259 
White,  Rev.  Hugh,  198 
Whitefield,  Rev.  George: — 
portrait  of,  frontispiece 
the  original  field  preacher, 

49 

as  Wesley’s  colleague,  49 
his  Calvinism,  46,  49,  50, 
106 

his  breach  with  Wesley,  49, 
50,  69,  96 

as  leader  of  the  Evangelical 
Revival,  50,  69,  70,  71,  96 
his  Journal,  49 
his  Tabernacle  and  hymn 
book,  52,  71,  106 
in  Wales,  69,  70 
in  America,  49,  81,  82,  83, 
120 

his  evangelism  there:  The 
Great  Awakening,  81,  82 
his  influence  on  Presbyterian¬ 
ism,  81,  82,  84 


309 

his  influence  on  hymn  sing¬ 
ing,  82 

his  tomb  at  Newburyport, 
81,  82,  92,  120 
and  Lady  Huntingdon,  71, 
96,  106 

and  Cennick,  46,  4y,  50,  51 
and  Newton,  137 
and  Doddridge,  171 
and  Watts,  171 
Whittier,  John  G.,  128,  151 
Whole  Booke  of  Psalms,  The,  6, 
8 

Whyte,  Principal  Alexander,  205 
Wilks,  Rev.  Matthew,  51 
Williams  and  Boden  Collection, 

158 

Williams,  Rev.  Peter,  68,  71 
Williams,  Rev.  William: — 

his  hymn,  “Guide  me,  O 
Thou  Great  Jehovah,”  54, 
68-79,  94,  9h 
sketch  of,  72 
portrait  of,  70 
influence  of  his  hymns  in 
Wales,  75 

Windsor,  257,  258,  262 
Wisdom  of  Solomon,  43 
Woodworth  (tune),  206 
Wordsworth,  Bishop  Christopher, 
265 

Wordsworth,  William,  151,  203, 
204 

World  War,  The,  129 
Worship  in  the  Church  of  Eng¬ 
land,  223,  246,  247 

Young,  Thomas,  159 

Zanchius  on  Predestination,  hi 


INDEX  OF  FIRST  LINES  OF  HYMNS 

[ Those  which  are  the  subjects  of  the  Studies  are  printed  in  Italics .] 

PAGE 

A  few  more  years  shall  roll  .  216 

Abide  with  me:  fast  falls  the  eventide  .  43 

All  hail  the  power  of  Jesus ’  Name  .  154-166 

All  hail  the  power  of  Jesus’  grace .  158 

All  people  that  on  earth  do  dwell  .  1-11 

Art  thou  weary ,  art  thou  languid .  232-242 

Before  the  Lord  we  bow  .  129 

Beyond  the  smiling  and  the  weeping  .  218 

Children  of  the  heavenly  King  .  45—55,  69,  184 

Christian,  dost  thou  see  them  .  239 

Christians,  awake!  salute  the  happy  morn  .  56-67 

Come,  Saviour  Jesus,  from  above  .  60 

Eternal  Ruler  of  the  ceaseless  round  .  128 

Far  from  the  world,  0  Lord,  I  flee  .  152 

Give  me  the  wings  of  faith  to  rise  .  27 

Glorious  things  of  thee  are  spoken  .  132 

Go,  labor  on:  spend,  and  be  spent  .  214 

God  be  with  you  till  we  meet  again  .  279-290 

God  moves  in  a  mysterious  way  .  14  2-1 53 

God  of  our  fathers,  known  of  old  .  126 

God  of  our  fathers,  whose  almighty  hand .  1 19-129 

Grace!  ’tis  a  charming  sound  .  180 


INDEX  OF  FIRST  LINES  OF  HYMNS 


312 

Gracious  Spirit,  Holy  Ghost  .  267 

Great  God  of  wonders,  all  Thy  ways  .  87 

Guide  me,  0  Thou  great  Jehovah  .  54,  68-79,  94,  96 

Hail  to  the  Lord’s  Anointed  .  181-193 

Hark!  my  soul,  it  is  the  Lord  .  152 

Hark,  the  glad  sound!  the  Saviour  comes  .  179 

Hark!  the  herald  angels  sing .  57,  66 

Here,  0  my  Lord,  I  see  Thee  face  to  face .  212 

How  gentle  God’s  commands  .  179 

How  sweet  the  Name  of  Jesus  sounds  .  130-141 

Hushed  was  the  evening  hymn  .  230 

I  heard  the  voice  of  Jesus  say  .  207-219 

I  lay  my  sins  on  Jesus  .  209,  213 

I  was  a  wandering  sheep  .  213 

I  would  not  live  alway,  I  ask  not  to  stay .  30 

Jerusalem  the  golden  .  238,  253,  259 

Jesu,  dulcis  memoria  .  140 

Jesus,  I  love  Thy  charming  Name  .  179 

Jesus,  Lover  of  my  soul .  33-44,  105,  108,  113 

Jesus  shall  reign  where’er  the  sun  .  193 

Jesus,  the  very  thought  of  Thee  .  140 

Jesus,  where’er  Thy  people  meet  .  148, 152 

Just  as  I  am,  without  one  plea  .  194-206,  221 

t 

Late,  late,  so  late!  and  dark  the  night  and  chill!  ....  212 

Lead,  kindly  Light  .  43,  76,  226,  271 

Lord,  I  am  Thine,  entirely  Thine .  80-92 

Lord  of  the  Sabbath,  hear  us  pray  .  180 

My  former  hopes  are  dead  .  148 

My  God,  and  Father,  while  I  stray .  198 

My  God,  and  is  Thy  table  spread  .  179 


INDEX  OF  FIRST  LINES  OF  HYMNS  313 

Now  from  Bethlehem  let  us  fare  .  239 

O  day  of  rest  and  gladness  .  265 

0  for  a  closer  walk  with  God  .  152 

0  God,  beneath  Thy  guiding  hand  .  129 

0  God  of  Bethel,  by  whose  hand  .  167-180 

0  happy  day  that  fixed  my  choice  .  179 

O  Jesus,  King  most  wonderful  .  140 

O  little  town  of  Bethlehem  .  66,  226 

0  Lord  of  Hosts,  almighty  King  .  129 

0  Lord  Divine,  that  stooped  to  share  .  278 

0  Love  that  wilt  not  let  me  go  .  268-278 

O’er  the  gloomy  hills  of  darkness  . .  73 

Our  fathers’  God,  from  out  whose  hand  .  128 

Pour  out  the  Spirit  from  on  high  .  191 

Quiet,  Lord,  my  froward  heart  .  134 

Rock  of  Ages  cleft  for  me  .  14,  104-118,  121,  156 

Rock  of  Israel,  cleft  for  me  .  115 

Saviour,  again,  to  Thy  dear  Name  we  raise  .  245-254 

See  Israel’s  gentle  Shepherd  stand  .  179 

Sometimes  a  Light  surprises  .  148,  152 

Sunset  and  evening  star  .  270 

Sweet  the  moments,  rich  in  blessing .  93-103 

Swing  low,  sweet  chariot  .  287 

The  Church  has  waited  long . . .  215 

The  Church’s  one  Foundation  . .  255-267 

The  day  is  past  and  over  .  239 

The  day  of  resurrection  .  239 

The  God  of  glory  sends  His  summons  forth  .  65 

The  King  of  love  my  Shepherd  is  .  21,  241 

The  Lord  my  pasture  shall  prepare  .  20 


3i4 


INDEX  OF  FIRST  LINES  OF  HYMNS 


The  Lord  my  Shepherd  is  .  21 

The  Lord's  my  Shepherd,  I'll  not  want  .  12-21,  175 

The  morning,  the  bright  and  the  beautiful  morning  . .  213 

The  Spirit  breathes  upon  the  word  .  148 

There  is  a  fountain  filled  with  blood  .  152 

There  is  a  green  hill  far  away  .  220-231 

There  is  a  land  of  pure  delight  .  22-32,  54,  55,  108 

Watchman,  tell  us  of  the  night  .  233 

We  sing  to  Thee,  Thou  Son  of  God .  51 

Weary  of  earth  and  laden  with  my  sin  .  266 

What  a  Friend  we  have  in  Jesus  .  282 

When  I  survey  the  wondrous  cross  .  217 

When  the  weary,  seeking  rest  .  212 

Where  is  the  blessedness  I  knew .  148 

While  my  Jesus  I’m  possessing .  99,  100 

Yet  there  is  room:  the  Lamb’s  bright  hall  of  song  ..  212 


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